ISLAMABAD: Secretary Election Commission of Pakistan, Kanwar Muhammad Dilshad, Saturday appreciated the role of NG0s for educating voters particularly the women voters and marginalized groups regarding elections.
He said this while addressing a workshop arranged by the SNEP, here in a local hotel, says a press release.
Dilshad impressed upon the representatives of NG0s, who have been engaged by the Support to National Elections in Pakistan (SNEP), a UNDP Project, to launch at the grass roots level a public awareness campaign for educating voters particularly the women voters to take part in the electoral process.
He gave an overview of the whole electoral process and the arrangements being made for holding free, fair and transparent elections in the country.
Dilshad further said that intensive training is being imparted under the cascade programme by two members’ team comprising a professional trainer and a technical trainer in collaboration with the SNEP-UNDP, under the direct supervision of International Experts to 500,000 polling personnel. He has said that for the first time in the electoral history of Pakistan, the ECP is introducing 350,000 transparent ballot boxes and 300,000 cardboard voting screens for marking the ballot papers during the upcoming General Elections.
Dilshad went on to say that this historical decision of introducing new arrangements by provision of improved electoral commodities will revolutionize the electoral process and enhance the credibility of the ECP for holding free, fair and transparent elections.
He thanked the SNEP-UNDP for extending financial and technical assistance to the ECP for holding free and fair elections.
He said that Punjab Chief Secretary, in compliance with the directives of the ECP, has issued instructions to all administrative secretaries, provincial police officers and district coordination officers to ensure that no violation of the directives of ECP regarding ban on transfer/postings takes place in the province and has also directed to withdraw any such postings/transfers immediately.
Dilshad said that Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan justice (Retd) Qazi Muhammad Farooq while appreciating the action taken by the CS Punjab has directed that copies of this letter be circulated to the Chief Secretaries of Sindh, NWFP and Balochistan for taking appropriate action on the same line as mentioned in the above letter.
Source: The Nation
Date:12/2/2007
