Chief Election Commissioner praised the media for spreading awareness among the masses about the significance of voting. PHOTO: SANA
A visibly content chief election commissioner (CEC) expressed his gratitude and paid tribute to the voters who thronged polling stations across the country, achieving a record 60% voter turnout in the historic 2013 general elections.
Addressing a press conference at 2am Sunday morning, Justice (retd) Fakharuddin G Ebrahim congratulated the nation and said, “People have manifested their power. Today, I am a happy man.”
The CEC made the first official polling result announcement in which Jamaat-e-Islami’s Sirajul Haq won the provincial assembly seat PK-95 of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P).
He praised the media for spreading awareness among the masses about the significance of voting, and also lauded the ECP staff for their “tireless efforts” in making arrangements for the 2013 general elections.
“It was a difficult task but officials have worked really hard,” he added.
Commenting on the results of the elections, he said good governance was the duty of the elected government. “They [elected government] must give us good governance.”
“The ball is in your [elected government] court now,” he said. The CEC also appreciated the arrangements made by the provincial governments, law enforcement agencies and the military for providing security on election day. “I had said on day one that if you give us law and order, we will give you free and fair elections. Free and fair elections would not have been possible in the absence of these arrangements.”
“If the journey [to holding fair elections] continues, the train will gain speed.”
He also announced that the commission would investigate and take action against those responsible for disrupting polling at several stations of NA-250, Karachi. It is the only constituency in which polling at around 40 polling stations was stopped. Re-polling will take place at these stations.
“Polling staff [in NA-250] was hijacked and we had to recover the staff,” the CEC said while announcing that the commission would examine the matter thoroughly. He did not however say who had hijacked the polling staff.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 12th, 2013.
COMMENTS (28)
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ECP and Fakhru should be really ashamed of the way elections were carried out in Karachi, with clear proofs of rigging in the strongholds of PTI i.e 250,252 and 253! i myself witnessed very open rigging in my polling station
Fakhru bhai, if you have not done so please issue a Standard Operating Protocol to ROs, Home Secretaries and IGPs to streamline investigation, prosecution and disqualification of vote riggers.
Mediocre performance by EC. Definite low level dhandli and mediocre arrangements. The vote rigging in Lahore was definite if low intensity and it did probably change the outcome in NA125 and NA122 where I observed matters. To me the evidence of eye witnesses is overwhelming whether acceptable to a court of Law. Polling staff were partisan to PMLN. It is high time influential politicians discourage such attitudes which reduce their own credibility and damage democracy.
@Hafiz Shah Ali: these polling officers (mostly teachers) love their families and want to live alive. Time for him and head of security to resign
The ECP's job was adminstrative and they did a poor job of it. The credit for a 60% turn out must be given fully to the people and not the ECP, as the people wanted change. What has happened in Karacih NA-250 was a disgrace.
Why congratulate the people of Pakistan when YOUR election staff was beaten up, YOUR ballot boxes have been pictured roads, YOUR voting papers have been torn apart (I am sure there is a Pakistani or at least an international law against that), YOUR OWN STAFF WAS INVOLVED IN RIGGING! Why lie to the people of Pakistan? Grow a pair and bring real democracy, move from the 19th century method of elections to the 21st century way of voting.
you must have resigned when the things was this bad!!.
See you in the hereafter on the Day of Judgment in front of LORD OF THE WORLDS, waiting anxiously
Congratulations for running a Facade. You should be proud of holding true to your real nature. I am deeply ashamed and angry at you and even the Army who did not allow a free and fair election to take place. Shame on you Mr Kayani, I really respected you but its clear you dont want the democratic process to flourish else you would have at least tried to ensure voting happens without intimidation and ballot stuffing. At least give it an honest try, thats all pakistani's ask for. This is why we love Imran, not because he delivered an outstanding mandate, but he makes an honest effort to "Try" to.
Why is Mr Fakharuddin G Ebrahim so afraid of naming the party who hijacked/kidnapped the polling staff at NA-250?
I feel highly disappointed after what happened in Karachi.
ha ha ha haaahaaa...
What about the massive rigging in Karachi especially NA 250. Please have re-polling in entire Karachi.Nearly all political parties have boycott elections in Karachi
@Asad. Right man. Very disappointed in Punjab province.
Sir, if you want to be the jury and the judge then keep congratulating yourself for the best elections. However I believe you failed miserably in getting the overseas Pakistanis their right to vote. Overseas Pakistanis are big contributors to national exchequer by sending remittances back home and various other indirect taxes. There is a big population and you can not call it irrelevant , they could have moved election result in any direction. Generally the lot out of Pakistan has more awareness and you failed miserably in getting its rightful opinion through ballot. So , keep patting yourself on the back , you and yourself are the best.
There is no end to self delusion and demagogy in Pakistan. If this is job well done God only knows what would be a disaster like. It starts right at the top and filters downwards. The poor performance of the ECP - start with the nomination process and 62/63 saga and continue onward till the disaster in Karachi today- is really beyond any description. And here we have the head of the ECP congratulating himself publically!!!! LOL - LOL - LOL
After the mess in Karachi especially NA 250, please fire the District Returning officer and arrest all polling staff who did not turn up for duty.They deprived the citizens of their most important fundamental right. If CEC cannot do it, he should resign. How can he justify polling starting in nA 250 at 2;30 PM
Nation has trusted the young PTI to take the leading role for KPK revamp. Now its PTI to prove organized repairs of KPK and Pakistan as well.
Actually the arrangements were really poor. A lot better could have been done with technology given how they had 5 years to come to this point. This election was massively rigged.
Now I genuinely hate democracy.
Serious failure. Problems in:
Baluchistan Punjab Karachi
And you are congratulating yourself!!
Sad
Seriously.....you are happy about this, Mr. fakhruddin because this has proved to be the most corrupt elections ever and people have shown you proof of it by making all these videos showing rigging! But if you still plan on closing your eyes and saying that you are a happy man today and if a judge cando this then God save Pakistan!
Congratulations Pakistan - You have shown the world that a Muslim nation can transition to real democracy- rule of law triumphed over cowards who wanted to derail democracy by causing mayhem and violence.
you have done wonderful work to fulfil your promise of keeping corrupt in parliament