Islamabad all agog for historic vote today

600 representatives to be elected to 50 union councils

ISLAMABAD: Residents of the federal capital will vote on Monday (today) to elect their local representatives – a first for the city’s urban areas – amid some wrinkles in the relevant laws that need to be smoothed out.

With today’s elections, the powers currently entrusted with the bureaucracy in Islamabad will devolve to the two-tier local government system.



Although the draft of the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Local Government Act 2015 was hurriedly prepared, contains a number of lacunae and overlaps in powers, most political parties still consider it the ‘first step towards participatory democracy’.



Moreover, the law is considered to be relatively much better than the Punjab Local Government Act 2013 in terms of devolution of powers to the elected representatives and financial autonomy.

During its formulation and while it was tabled in parliament for passage, both the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) did not show any interest in setting the tone and tenor of the document.



The government has already introduced some changes in the act through a presidential ordinance passed last month: the reserved seats for women in the Metropolitan Corporation have been reduced from 16 to nine and the deputy mayor slots have been increased from one to three, while the eligibility criteria for the mayor’s election have also been changed.

Islamabad has an estimated population of 1.8 million but only 680,000 voters (38%) for its 50 union councils. The two-tier LG system consists of union councils and an MC.

In the first phase of the polls, voters would directly elect 600 representatives – 12 from each UC – while the second phase will see the elected representatives form a 66-member MC.



The MC will consist of 50 elected chairmen from all UCs, as well as another 16 members, whom all the chairmen will elect directly. The MC will be headed by a mayor and three deputy mayors, who will be chosen from among the 600 elected representatives.



A total of 640 polling stations – 261 for men, 256 for women and 123 combined – have been set up across the ICT, with a total of 2,156 polling booths. As many as 640 presiding officers and 6,468 assistant presiding officers will oversee the electoral process. According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), some 2,396 candidates will be on the ballot, competing for various positions. Though it is a party-based election, independent candidates are in the majority.

Security arrangements

The district administration has made ample security arrangements to maintain order during the elections: a battalion of the Pakistan Army, 650 paramilitary Rangers and around 8,000 police officials will perform security duties on election day.



Of the total 640 polling stations, 62 have been declared ‘sensitive’ by the Special Branch of the Islamabad police. Old rivalries, enmities, and political, religious and ethnic differences have been cited among the reasons for declaring these stations sensitive, according to an intelligence report.

The army will be deployed at only sensitive polling stations while Rangers and police at all polling stations across the ICT.

A blanket ban has also been imposed on carrying or exhibiting weapons during the polls. Moreover, police have also placed a ban on aerial firing and fireworks.



The authorities have also requested the services of 3,000 police personnel as reinforcement from Azad Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab and the Frontier Constabulary.

Working hours slashed

The government has announced early closure of its offices on Monday in an effort to get public employees to cast their ballots in time.

“All government departments including federal ministries located in Islamabad shall be closed at 2pm on November 30 to enable the employees to cast their votes in the LG elections,” said a notification.



Earlier, PTI leader Asad Umar had asked the ECP to extend polling time for two hours so that government servants could also cast their ballots in the ICT. He pointed out that the same problem had been faced in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s LG polls.

However, an ECP official told The Express Tribune that the electoral body might not be extending the time for polling.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th,  2015.