ASSOCIATED PRESS OF PAKISTAN
NEWS SUMMARY
(24-03-2000)
CE announces holding of local govt elections from Dec. 2000 to July 2001
ISLAMABAD, March 24 (APP)- Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf here Thursday announced holding of Community Government elections, which will begin from Dec. 2000 at Union Council level and come to a completion with District Assemblies' elections by July, 2001. Announcing the programme for devolution of power and responsibility, at Chagai auditorium, he stated that voters' age would be lowered by three years, from the from 21 years to 18 years, to broaden voting base and ensure maximum participation of the youth. Elections will be held in two stages. First the Union Council level, commencing in December 2000 in 15 districts and subsequently in Feb., March, April and May, with 20-25 districts going to polls each time. In the second stage, the district assemblies' elections will be held countrywide in July 2001.
All government/councils upto district level will be in place by Aug. 14, 2001. These elections, he said, will be held on a non-party basis. He said, districts would be empowered both administratively and financially and administrative divisions will cease to exist when Local Council and District Assemblies are in place after these elections. Elections to the Union Council framework will comprise district assemblies, tehsil councils and Union Councils. The elections to the Union Council and District Assemblies will be held on a direct basis while those of tehsil council will be indirect. The new dispensation, he said, will end the rural-urban divide, as it would be for the first time that elections to Union Council will be introduced in the urban areas. (Previously, the urban areas used to have union committees while rural areas had union councils, as lowest tiers). "The March 23, 2000 represents the beginning of Pakistan revolution, a peaceful, constructive, democratic, dynamic revolution-whose sole objective is to place in hands of the people the power to shape their own destiny," he said. He said, "with this new concept of elected community governments, an unprecedented transfer of power will take place from the elites to the vast majority." "The people themselves will become empowered to take charge of the foundations of democracy and of the system by which they are governed." The Chief Executive read out a statement at the outset on the devolution of power and responsibility, which marks the establishment of the foundation of democracy.
He said, district and local government were the fundamental tier of democracy. Spelling out the district and local government plan, he said, the union council will consist of 26 members, with equal distribution of men and women. The members will be elected through adult franchise and its chairman will be elected directly who will also be automatically a member of the district assembly. Breakdown of seats includes 16 general seats (8 men, 8 women), workers/peasants seats 4 men, 4 women, and minorities seats having one man one women. The Tehsil Councils will comprise 34 members elected indirectly by all the union councillors which will be headed by a Mayor elected by the tehsil council. The breakdown includes general seats 25, women seats 5, workers/peasants seats 2, and minorities seats 2. The District Assembly will consist of 66 members, including 50 general seats, 10 women seats, 3 workers and peasants and 3 minorities. The women seats, workers and minorities seats will be elected indirectly by the union councillors. The district assemblies, operating under the Chief Mayor, will have legislative powers to mobilize resources through levy of new taxes. "Being financially self-reliant, the district assemblies will work out their own plans," General Musharraf said. "The framework envisages creation of a system where the district becomes the basic governance and development unit of the country. The districts will have fiscal autonomy. Like the National Finance Commission Award, he said, Provincial Finance Commissions will be set up which will allocate finances to the districts in a transparent manner.
The Chief Executive said that the proposed political structure involved a trilateral distribution of responsibilities between the centre, the provinces and the districts representing the basic rung of democracy. The Chief Mayor, elected directly will be personally responsible for district administration, and will have under him senior government officers acting as district coordinating officers who in turn will coordinate the functioning of all government departments in the districts, called the district officers. The deputy chief mayor will be the speaker of the district assembly and will deputize the chief mayor in his absence. The province will be responsible for the raising, organization, training, equipping and maintenance of police for a district. Head of the police in a district will be selected by the Chief Mayor from a panel to be ratified by the district assembly. This police boss will operate directly under the Chief Mayor. Removal of the police chief or any other police officer on recommendations of the chief mayor will require district assembly's ratification by two-third majority. Gen Musharraf said, the bigger cities will be run as City Districts and each City District will be divided into a number of towns. The City District will comprise the same structures of District Government as the Rural Districts with the Tehsils being the towns. The Chief Executive also announced the revival of Conciliatory Courts at Union level to preempt litigation of cases. These will allow for alternate, out of court dispute resolution system. To address crimes against women special courts for women will be created, he said.
The Government, he said, is also analyzing feasibility of 'Run Off' elections for the posts of chief Mayor, Dy Chief Mayor and all mayors to ensure that a winning candidate necessarily polls over 51% votes. The elections will be based on accurate, computerized electoral rolls which are being produced with assistance of NADRA (National Data and Registration Authority). "Unfortunately these are all manipulated/distorted to the extent that nobody has faith in them. On popular demand therefore, these have to be produced anew which is being done ably by NADRA." Gen Musharraf said, to enhance transparency of the electoral rolls, these will be physically verified on ground and the Army will be used for the purpose. The elections will be held in two stages- first the Union Council level elections, commencing in Dec 2000 in 15 Districts and subsequently in February, March, April and May 2001 with 20 to 25 Districts going to polls each time. In the second stage, the District Assembly elections will be held countrywide in July 2001. All government/councils elections will be in place by Aug 14, 2001. The Chief Executive said, the Provinces are the geo-political pillars of the State of Pakistan. "We are a Federation of constituent units and therefore, the principle of Federalism shall remain the central guiding principle of public policy." The devolution of power will have to proceed from the Federal to the Provincial and only thereafter, the Districts, he said. "Similarly, the districts will remain within a Provincial framework and the relationship of the districts with the Federal Government will be through the Provincial Governments."
The Chief Executive deplored that for far too long, too much power and authority have been concentrated in Islamabad. "The entire adminstration system has been distorted and disfigured . So extreme has been the interference by the Federal Government in local affairs that there have been several instances in which elected prime ministers have personally approved the selection of specific persons as SHOs of police stations," he said. Gen Musharraf emphasized that these "new, vastly empowered local bodies are not going to be a substitute for the Provincial Assemblies or the National Assembly and Senate and neither are they going to be used as an electoral college for other levels of democracy." He expressed the confidence that the new local bodies are going to serve as the "strong, grass-roots level democratic foundation of a political system in which at a second and third stage, the Provincial Assemblies will be elected, to be followed by the election of a National Assembly and the Senate." The new redistribution of power and responsibility between the Federation, the Provinces and the Districts represents a real, authentic, fundamental change in the structures of governance of our country, he stated. "Precisely, because this is a change of enormous significance for our people, our Government has taken time to conceptualize and prepare the proposed framework. Each element has been given detailed attention." The Chief Executive also announced to open this local governance plan for a thorough analysis/debate in the National media stretching today to Aug 14, 2000. "On Aug 14, 2000, the final shape of the District Government will be decided and the implementation machinery for the elections set into motion."
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