ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) wants that all members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) should be removed to create the benchmark for the much talked-about electoral reforms in the country.

During recent talks between PTI leaders and other opposition parties, a senior PTI leader privy to the meetings told Dawn, “we have tried to convince them that in the presence of present ECP members no electoral reforms will be fruitful”.

PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Information Secretary Dr Shireen Mazari met Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah on July 8 and discussed with him electoral reforms, including reconstitution of the ECP.

When asked as to why the PTI was pushing for the reconstitution of the ECP, the PTI leader said that the move had been made after all political parties raised objections against the existing election commission for its failure to conduct free and fair polls and this had made the ECP controversial.

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“Even if the government and opposition political parties agree to a set of electoral reforms for which a 33-member bi-partisan, bi-cameral committee is in the process of constitution, how come the present ECP set-up be trusted with their implementation,” the PTI leader said.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has written to the Speaker of the National Assembly to form a 33-member committee which, after its official notification, will present its recommendation within three months.

When asked how was the PPP leadership’s response to the PTI demand, he said the issue was discussed in detail but it was difficult to say whether or not the PPP would support the idea.

However, one thing is sure. Since the proposed committee had been given the mandate to suggest even constitutional amendments for electoral reforms, therefore, “we are hoping that our demand will also be given due attention”. For example, the PTI leader said, the PPP had proposed a four-year term for the government from next general elections.

The PPP was also of the view that bureaucrats and senior lawyers should also be allowed to become Chief Election Commissioner. The position of the ECP at present was only reserved for judges of the superior judiciary, he added.

For all these changes and removal of present ECP members, the government will have to agree to some constitutional remedy because at present all four ECP members had supported the five-year term. The only way to send them home at the moment is to invoke Article 209 of the constitution through the Supreme Judicial Council.

Published in Dawn, July 11th, 2014