Monetary independence: ECP to be given full financial autonomy

Ishaq Dar claims 80% of work on electoral reforms completed

ISLAMABAD: Accepting a long-standing demand of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the parliamentary panel on electoral reforms has given the top electoral body full financial autonomy.

The decision was taken in a sub-panel meeting of bipartisan parliamentary committee on electoral reforms, held on Tuesday. The meeting was held to give final shape to recommendations seeking reforms in the electoral system.

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Being a constitutional body, ECP is among the new organizations whose annual budget is approved without voting as “charged expenditures”. However, the electoral body has always complained that it was subservient to finance ministry to get its money released.

“We have decided to give ECP full financial autonomy” Zahid Hamid who heads the sub-panel told reporters after the meeting at the parliament house. On the PM’s request, the national assembly speaker in August last year constituted a committee comprising members of NA and Senate from all the parties in parliament. FM Ishaq Dar was to lead this parent panel. It received over 1,200 recommendations from different stakeholders. These recommendations were forwarded to Zahid Hamid to lead the sub-panel to draft a comprehensive reforms package.

This draft was to include amendments in certain clauses of the constitution and laws related to elections.

Dar in a press conference claimed that 80 percent work of electoral reforms has been completed and the rest will be done very soon. However he did not give any timeframe.

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The panel was originally tasked to complete its work within four months. Government blames PTI’s last year’s sit-in protests for the delay.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 5^th, 2015.