CEC appointment: Govt-opposition stalemate to open opportunity for CJ

According to the 20th Amendment, chief justice will make selection in case both sides fail to evolve consensus.

ISLAMABAD:

The chief justice of Pakistan will have to appoint a new chief election commissioner if the government and opposition fail to reach a consensus on the matter, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz spokesperson Senator Pervaiz Rashid told The Express Tribune.

In accordance with the 20th Constitutional Amendment, the appointment of the next CEC will have to be made by the chief justice in case a committee, comprising members of the government and opposition, fails to resolve the issue amicably, Rashid explained.

The committee members will have to agree on one name for the slot with a two-thirds majority vote, which, at present, both the Pakistan Peoples Party and the PML-N, do not enjoy, he added.

The spokesperson ruled out any political dialogue with the federal government on any issue other than on the formation of a caretaker government to hold free and fair elections.

“There is no need to enter into a dialogue with the federal government under the present circumstances. Those days are gone when abysmal political situations could be improved through govt-opposition talks,” he said.

Rashid further said that it was their constitutional obligation to join the federal government in a meeting to decide a new CEC. “Our acceptance should not be interpreted as a welcome to the government’s invitation,” he said.

The spokesperson added that the PML-N is willing to hold negotiations with the federal government on the formation of a caretaker government for immediate general elections.

Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had invited the PML-N for consultations on the appointment of a new CEC on Saturday. Both sides have recommended names of potential candidates for the slot.

The PML-N recommended the names of acting chief election commissioner Justice Shakirullah Jan, Justice (retd) Ghulam Rabbani and Justice (retd) Sardar Raza Khan; while the government recommended Justice (retd) Munir A Sheikh, Justice (retd) Amirulmulk Mengal and Justice (retd) Qurban Ali.

According to constitutional provisions, a 12-member parliamentary committee, headed by federal minister Syed Khurshid Shah, will have to agree on one name out of six nominees as the next head of the Election Commission of Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 4^th, 2012.