ISLAMABAD: Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has consented to hold local body elections in Punjab province using electronic voting machines (EVMs) and has stated that the procedure will require 205,000 devices.
The decision was reached at a meeting chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, which examined local body elections and delimitations in Punjab.
The meeting was briefed on the local government ordinance by the secretary of Punjab, to which the special secretary ECP advised several revisions.
While agreeing to run local body elections using EVMs, the ECP stated that while they had no issue to the use of machines, they must be approved by the federal and provincial governments.
It went on to say that the province would require 205,000 machines to complete the process, and that the ECP will purchase the equipment on the open market in accordance with all norms and regulations.
It went on to say that purchasing such a huge number of devices in the 120 days required to run local body elections following the collapse of the previous system appears to be impracticable.
“However, under a trial project, it is conceivable to hold elections on some neighbourhood and village councils using EVMs,” they stated.
