K-P governor commits to respecting SC poll order

PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Governor Haji Ghulam Ali has said that he has not seen the letter sent by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), but will definitely give a date for the provincial assembly's polls.

Speaking to a local news outlet, the governor said that he always respected the courts, but the letter had been sent to his principal secretary, which would be opened on Monday.

The governor, while referring to the Supreme Court order, said the orders would be followed. “We will definitely announce a date for the elections as we have always respected courts and will do so in the future as well.”

Speaking to another news outlet, the governor expressed his disapproval to the president’s announcement of holding polls in Punjab on April 30. He said that he was hoping for a unanimous date for the elections in both the provinces – Punjab and K-P.

He said it would have been better if the president and the chief election commissioner had sat together to decide on the matter after thorough consultations.

However, he conceded that maybe the president thought it was better if he announced a date himself. The governor also highlighted that there was a stark difference between the situation in both the provinces.

Earlier, the Election Commission had requested a date from the governor for provincial elections as per the orders of the Supreme Court (SC).

The Election Commission sent letters to Governor Ali for the K-P Assembly elections in the light of the apex court’s orders.

In the letter sent by the Election Commission, it had been said that an early date should be suggested for the provincial assembly elections so that other arrangements could be made.

However, the letter sent by the Election Commission was not in the governor’s name but in the name of his principal secretary, who was expected to open it when he returned to office on Monday.

The Governor House spokesperson confirmed that the letter from the Election Commission had been received by the governor and after consultation, the governor would approve the date for the election of the provincial assembly.

It has been reported that the governor wanted to consult with his party chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and other Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) leaders.

After that, the Election Commission would be informed of the date by Monday.

Contempt of court

On Saturday, provincial Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokesperson Shaukat Yousafzai said that the governor was committing contempt of court and violation of the Constitution by not giving a date for the election.

Yousafzai said in his video message that the election date should have been announced by now after the decision of the top court.

He said that the governor was searching for excuses on the matter, but not giving a date, which fell under the category of contempt of court.

The caretaker government was no longer a caretaker government but a PDM government, the number of cabinet members, advisers and assistants reached 26, he added.

He claimed that ministers who cried about the economic crisis were also a burden on the government.

He also lashed out at Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz, who he said did not address conventions anymore because of the PDM government.

“They should not blame the judiciary for their mistakes; Maryam Nawaz should demand the dismissal of Ishaq Dar instead of blaming others; today Maryam cannot even defend her government,” the PTI leader said.

“Imran Khan's plaster is coming off now […] the PDM people should not run away,” he remarked.