Govt, opposition narrow differences over CEC

Both sides willing to resolve deadlock over crucial appointment.

ISLAMABAD: Top negotiators from the government and the opposition managed to partially break a months old deadlock over the appointment of a new chief election commissioner (CEC) on Monday. Both sides appeared to be departing from their hardened positions to reach a mandatory consensus.

The first sign of a breakthrough emerged when the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said he would consult other political groups to see if any of the three retired judges he earlier proposed for the slot could be withdrawn from a bi-partisan parliamentary panel.

“Any change or modification in the panel for the sake of consensus will be dependent on consultation and concurrence of all political parties,” said Nisar, representing the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

The statement by Khan was in total contrast of what another PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal said on Sunday, saying that the PML-N was willing to negotiate with the government on the most important appointment but would never change its nominees.

Incumbent acting CEC Justice Shakirullah Jan, Justice (retd) Fakharuddin G Ebrahim and Justice (retd) Nasir Aslam Zahid are on the PML-N list for the post under which the upcoming general polls will be held.

On the other hand, the governing Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had proposed Justice (retd) Munir A Sheikh, Justice (retd) Amirul Mulk Mengal and Justice (retd) Zahid Qurban Alvi.

According to reports, the PPP had asked the PML-N to withdraw one or two of its nominees for evolving consensus. Sources say the PPP wants the opposition party to take back the name of Shakirullah Jan as he is considered to have close relations with Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry.

A 12-member committee consisting of both the government and the opposition lawmakers is supposed to appoint the commissioner with a two-thirds vote—meaning no party can bypass the other and mutual consensus is the only way the issue can be resolved.

“If the intention is to hold free and fair elections acceptable to all then the consensus on the new chief election commissioner can be arrived at within no time,”  said Chaudhry Nisar. He, however, blamed the government for having intentions ‘far from clear and honest’.

There was no definite word from either sides as to what caused them to agree to take the process forward but officials privy to development said the government and the opposition had decided to have an ‘out of committee’ settlement before a formal decision was made.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 3^rd, 2012.