ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday asserted that the federal government would not be able to fund elections that would not include the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Addressing a post-Cabinet press conference in Islamabad, the federal minister said the Federal Cabinet today discussed the matter at length and agreed that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was bound to use EVMs in by-elections.
“During the meeting, it was discussed that the government could not fund any election held without the use of EVMs as after the recent amendment, the law only recognised polls involving the use of EVMs,” he said, while referring to contentious amendments to the Elections Act, 2017, which were bulldozed through a joint session of parliament.
Fawad Chaudhry said that the cabinet had formed a committee in this regard and the law ministry would also give its opinion, adding that the government now wanted the ECP to start working towards the induction of EVMs in elections.
Moreover, he said, Science and Technology Minister Shibli Faraz had shared during cabinet meeting a comprehensive plan on the use of EVMs, which included details such as how many machines would be required.
‘Vote-buying video’
Meanwhile, Fawad Chaudhry also spoke about recently surfaced video clips wherein individuals were seen distributing cash, allegedly for getting on-oath pledges from voters to cast votes in their favour ahead of the NA-133 by-poll in Lahore.
“The cabinet has expressed concern on the videos,” he said, adding that had quick action been taken after a similar incident during Senate elections. Highlighting the importance of transparent election, he said while it was important that the ECP was strengthened, it being “effective” was also of significance.
‘Sindh govt responsible for inflation’
The Information Minister also accused PPP-led Sindh government for the rising prices of commodities in Pakistan, saying that the Sensitive Price Index (SPI) readings were “messed up” mainly because of data from Karachi and Hyderabad.
He said a presentation on the prices of kitchen items was given during the cabinet meeting and it showed that the prices had gone down in recent days.
The SPI, he said, had recorded a decrease of 0.67 per cent and the price of sugar had reduced by more than Rs60 in a month. He claimed that the rise in the price of sugar was “basically due to the Sindh government delaying the [sugarcane] crushing season”.
