Unusual postings: ECP defends new transfers as capacity building exercise

Electoral body does not explain why the four ECP members were not consulted before making the postings.

ISLAMABAD: After the government seemingly failed to justify ‘irrational’ postings and transfers in the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) before the Senate on Friday, the top electoral body came forth with its own version on the issue.

The Express Tribune had reported on March 10 that notifications for the postings and transfers of 90 electoral officers had been issued without the approval of the four ECP members, a constitutional requirement. Following the 18th amendment, the powers of the chief election commissioner (CEC) were devolved to the ECP, which comprises the CEC and four other members, each representing a province.

In a statement issued on Friday evening, the ECP skirted around the question of why the constitutional requirement was not fulfilled, saying that the postings and transfers were made “after consulting the provincial election commissioners and with the approval of the CEC.” Unlike the ECP members, provincial election commissioners are part of the commission’s bureaucracy. The statement also claimed the new postings were part of ‘capacity-building’ efforts without explaining how they would help in this regard when most of the officers concerned would work in the same grade and capacity at a different station.

“The movement of officers was made to help them to get exposure, experience at different places/appointments and eventually groom them, make them able to deliver under varied situations and further ensure fairness and equal opportunity to all officers in carrier development,” the statement said.

“How would it help build my capacity if I am transferred from Punjab to Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa or Balochistan but the nature of my work will remain the same,” said a district election commissioner (DEC) who was posted to a district in Sindh. “It is nothing but victimisation for those working with honesty in most cases,” another official remarked.

Under rules normally an officer is transferred from one province to another for two main reasons: either he or she requests it or is being penalised for some inefficiency.

Earlier, when ECP posted officials to hard areas, they were given some incentive, like a promotion. Those already working in hard stations were given a posting in soft station as recognition of their work. This precedent was ignored, in the process of bulk transfers starting from January this year.

ECP claims the new posting/transfer policy was circulated to all officers before the postings and transfers were made.  Officials contradict this since the claimed policy was not made public nor shared with the media. “Under rules an official to be transferred to a new station is informed three months in advance. Here we come to know all of a sudden when we were handed over notification,” one affected official said.

Minister’s justification ‘unsatisfactory’

Earlier on Friday, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Sheikh Aftab defended the postings in the Senate saying that “the ECP is a constitutional body empowered to take all its decisions independently” and that there was no government interference in commission’s matters.

He was responding to a calling attention notice moved by PTI Senator Azam Swati. Swati termed the reply unsatisfactory.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 12^th, 2016.