A welcome ruling on LG polls

September 20 has finally been set as the date for local government (LG) elections in Punjab and Sindh by the Supreme Court. It is sincerely hoped that this time the Court has not been given another false assurance and the plan is followed through without any further delay in implementation. In a court hearing on March 6, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said the polls could be held in the two provinces on September 20 if two new printing machines are provided to the Printing Corporation of Pakistan (PCP) to print the ballot papers. The obstacles to carrying out basic governance functions in Pakistan are often ludicrous, and this appears to be the case here as well. With so many delays in the LG polls process, the ostensibly minor issue of printing ballot papers had still not been sorted. In an earlier hearing, the Supreme Court was told that the PCP does not have the capacity to print the required number of ballot papers within the given time frame because the machines at its disposal are obsolete and have not been changed since 1951.



Precious time of the country as a whole and the Supreme Court in particular has been repeatedly wasted with respect to these elections as the matter only seems to be going around in circles, with the polls being continuously delayed. Balochistan set an example when it successfully and peacefully completed the LG polls process in January, despite the countless challenges of security and instability that the province faces. If Balochistan can manage to hold the local government elections, then there is no reason for Punjab and Sindh, relatively more peaceful provinces, to fail to implement constitutional commands. There has been so much back and forth with respect to the polls that it has become difficult for the public to even keep track of the developments in the matter. It is time this chapter was finally closed and the Constitution respected. All relevant authorities must abide by court orders as opposed to dragging their feet on the implementation process and making it seem as if the LG election process is of importance to the Supreme Court only. Local governments are a key aspect of democracy and citizens must not be further deprived of their democratic rights.

Published in The Express Tribune, March  9^th,  2015.

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