Pressure mounts as Opp disagrees on govt nominee for CEC

[ahlam1399]

ISLAMABAD: The combined opposition led by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is under pressure to either support the candidature of Capt (R) Babar Yaqoob Fateh as Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) or face the music. Action against some PML-N leaders is under way after the party leadership’s failure to muster support over Babar’s name from within its ranks.Although opposition parties are willing to pick a candidate for CEC from the government’s list of three proposed nominees, the difference persists over the final nominee. The government is adamant on settling on anybody other than Babar whereas the opposition agrees on any candidate other than Babar. Former federal secretaries Jalil Abbas Jillani and Fazal Abbas Maken are two other nominees from the government side but not under serious consideration.The News has learnt that PML-N’s top leadership was approached sometimes back by a powerful official to seek the support for Babar’s candidature. It was initially agreed. The proposal however received a lot of resistance when discussed in a meeting of parliamentary party headed by Khawaja Asif. Questions were raised about the fairness of general elections of 2018 overseen by Babar as Secretary Election Commission of Pakistan.The party’s pulse report was conveyed to Nawaz Sharif who is currently residing in London for treatment and Shahbaz Sharif is accompanying him. Nawaz who was earlier receptive to the proposal also opposed it and agreed to the concerns of his lawmakers about Babar whose connections at important places are routinely whispered about but not discussed openly.However, this change of mind was not without cost. Some actions were taken against Shahbaz Sharif, Khawaja Asif and Ahsan Iqbal. A story in The News has already reported the pressure being applied on former DG FIA Bashir Memon to fabricate cases against opposition in order to fall them in line but he had refused.Other than PML-N, Pakistan People’s Party and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (Fazl) are also not willing to support Babar’s candidature. “Doing so will defeat our narratives that general elections of 2018 were not fair,” they argue. Sitting members of ECP are also opposed to this idea, it has been learnt. Although they are not part of selection process, they have conveyed to the opposition that appointment of Babar means they will be forced to work under a person who is presently their subordinate as ECP Secretary.The ECP is run by Chief Election Commissioner and four members picked from each province. The CEC used to be an all-powerful post in the past. However, after the Elections Act 2017, the members enjoy powers equal to CEC much like Chief Justice of Highs Courts and Supreme Courts. However, like CJs, CEC has administrative powers for running the affairs of ECP.As the government and opposition held negotiations, it was initially agreed that two ECP members for the vacant posts of Balochistan and Sindh would be taken from the names proposed by the opposition and CEC will be picked from the list of three nominees proposed by the government. But deadlock emerged as government wasn’t ready to agree on any name other than Babar. “We asked them what harm is in choosing either Jalil Abbas Jillani or Fazal Abbas Maken, government representatives said that Babar is their only choice as others have been named just to fulfil the formality of proposing three names.”.As The News contacted Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Swati who is part of the government team, he refused to divulge details saying he was under obligation not to discuss the final nominee from the government side. Swati said the opposition wanted to broker a deal and secure concessions, which the government is not in mood to offer. He doesn’t see light at the end of tunnel as he said that even SC can’t direct on it even if the matter is referred there. “This is a catch-22 situation,” he said.http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/com/cwEr/~4/fQtEmMU-dlk

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