Question hour: Final electoral rolls to be published in May 2012

ISLAMABAD:

The final computerised electoral rolls will be published in May next year to be used during the upcoming general and local government elections, announced Law Minister Moula Bakhsh Chandio during the question hour in the National Assembly on Wednesday.

He stated that the final rolls will be published after incorporation of the revising authority’s decisions into the preliminary electoral rolls.

Computerised electoral rolls are based on new census blocks adopted by the Census Organisation during Census 2011. The door-to-door verification exercise of Draft Electoral Rolls prepared by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) was completed on November 15, the minister told the lower house.

He said that preliminary electoral rolls will be published and displayed at about 50,000 display centres by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) throughout the country for public inspection for 21 days to invite claims, objections and applications for corrections.

The law minister told the house that NADRA has declared 37.18 million voters unverified out of 81.21 million voters appearing on existing electoral rolls prepared in 2007.

Airblue compensation

Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar told the National Assembly that compensation was being paid to families of victims of the Airblue crash, by the management and the government.

Of the 152 cases of compensation, 59 have been paid and settled, seven are partially paid, 26 are in process and possess succession certificates while 32 cases are in litigation and 28 have no succession certificate.

“The compensation payment of Rs5,500,000 per victim, as announced by the Airblue management, will be completed as soon as the remaining 28 succession certificates are submitted and litigation cases are decided,” said Mukhtar.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 24^th, 2011.