Senate election: Constitution tweak for open ballot planned

The government will introduce a constitutional amendment bill in the parliament next week for the open voting in the Senate elections and to allow the dual nationals to contest elections, as part of an election reforms.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Information Minister Senator Shibli Faraz, Adviser to Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Dr Babar Awan said on Thursday that the election reforms package had been prepared after a series of meetings chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan.

“This will be the first constitutional reforms package since 1985 to ensure that Senate elections are held in a free, fair and transparent manner,” Awan told reporters. He said that in the past Senate elections were made controversial with purchase of votes and corruption.

He said the proposed constitutional amendments would be a test case for the opposition, which in the past had supported the idea of open voting in the parliament. “A road map has been given to the political parties in the parliament to stop the horse trading and buying of votes in elections,” he added.

“The introduction of reforms package in parliament will make it clear who in the opposition supported fair elections and wanted to stop the buying of votes and horse trading and who would be doing otherwise,” he added.

The adviser said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had made it clear that irrespective of the fact that his party would get more votes or less, he would pursue the electoral reforms in the Senate and the path to accountability.

He said that two former prime ministers, Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto, signed the Charter of Democracy in May 2006 and one of its point was that the indirect elections should be open with identifiable votes cast.

Last month, the government moved an 11-page reference under Article 186 of the Constitution to the Supreme Court, seeking the apex court’s advice on whether the condition of secret ballot under Article 226 of the Constitution applied to the Senate elections.

The reference was filed soon after a decision of the federal cabinet to hold open ballot for election of the upper house of parliament on seats which will fall vacant in March this year. The matter is pending with a larger bench of the apex court.

“The opposition parties did not support the presidential reference for transparent elections in the Senate, Awan told the reporters. “The reforms are a national agenda and nobody wants the senators to get elected through use of money or corruption,” he added.

Explaining the constitutional bill, Awan said that amendment would be made to Article 59(2) of the Constitution, which will say: “an open vote will be cast instead of the single transferable vote in the Senate election”.

Through another amendment to the Article 63(1)C, the dual nationals will be able to contest the upcoming Senate elections and elections of parliament and provincial assemblies in the future, the prime minister’s adviser announced.

However, he clarified that in case a dual national won the election, he would have to give a clear proof before taking oath as legislator that he had renounced his foreign citizenship. “If he will lose the election, the dual national will have no need to renounce his foreign citizenship,” Awan added.

The adviser was optimistic that many dual nationals would want to take part in the Senate elections. He urged the opposition parties to support the government in undertaking electoral reforms in the parliament.