Postal ballot: 6,000 teachers uncertain how to vote

Those performing duties at polling stations on Election Day fear being deprived of the right.

PESHAWAR:

More than 6,000 male and female teachers have not yet received their postal ballot forms to cast their vote on Election Day while performing duties at polling stations across the city.

All-Primary Teachers Association (APTA) Chairman Malik Khalid Khan told The Express Tribune on Saturday that April 25 was the last date for issuing the ballot forms for government employees. This date was later extended till May 3 for teachers by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

“The extension was neither advertised in electronic nor print media and the teachers remained in the dark,” complained Khalid. He alleged the ECP did not consult the teachers regarding their duties and instead obtained their data directly from the Education Management Information System through the provincial education department. According to him, the ECP’s unilateral decision led to these problems. “Many of the teachers fear being deprived of voting.”

According to the data obtained from returning officers (ROs) of 11 provincial and four national constituencies, 891 government officials in Peshawar, including those assigned to work on Election Day, had applied for ballot forms through their parent organisations. About 119 were rejected this facility for submitting incomplete or incorrect information. Some employees had given the wrong area code, explained the ROs.

Similarly, 1,392 employees assigned to work at polling stations for provincial assembly seats had applied to avail the postal ballot facility. Of these, 228 applications were rejected while the rest were issued the ballot forms.

Assistant returning officer for PK-8, Zahir Shah, said teachers were not bothered to go through the hectic process of filling out the ballot forms, due to which a large number of them did not apply. Ballot forms were also rejected because government employees from other departments who were not eligible had also applied, he added.

Liaquat Ali Daudzai, a teacher at Government Primary School in Daudzai, said teachers used to perform duties at nearby polling stations in the previous elections. “Our election duty letter used to come along with our postal ballot voting form. This time, however, no such procedure was followed,” he lamented.

NA-1                                                     Data not available

NA-2                                        360                              60

NA-3                                        317                              59

NA-4                                        214                              0

PK-1                                        70                                 15

PK-2                                        92                                3

PK-3                                        37                                6

PK-4                                        147                              18

PK-5                                        171                              57

PK-6                                        39                                12

PK-7                                        73                                11

PK-8                                        138                              1

PK-9                                        123                              6

PK-10                                      89                                14

PK-11                                      330                              85

Published in The Express Tribune, May 5^th, 2013.