ECP slots: NA speaker refuses to form panel without PM, opposition leader’s consensus

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ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has rejected the demand for the formation of a parliamentary committee for the appointment of two members of the opposition leader Omar Ayub and two members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

In response to Ayub’s request, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq wrote in a letter, “The parliamentary committee cannot be established before the consultation process between the Prime Minister and the opposition leader.”

Earlier on Thursday, the opposition leader formally requested the Lower House Speaker to form a committee to start the appointment process.

He nominated six members of the opposition – four from the National Assembly and two from the Senate. The nominees of the Lower House include MNA Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, MNA Asad Qaiser, MNA Hameed Raza, and MNA Latif Khosa.

The nominees of the Senate include Senator Shobeli Faraz and Allama Raja Nasir Abbas.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif had earlier written a letter to Omar Ayub on May 16, and started a consultation process, and invited him to participate in the conversation on appointments.

In response to Omar Ayub’s letter, Sadiq outlined the constitutional process for the formation of the committee. He confirmed that consultation between Prime Minister Shahbaz and the opposition leader was underway and it was emphasized that the committee could only be formed after presenting their proposed names to both sides.

The letter states, “If the Prime Minister and the opposition leaders fail to reach the consensus, the matter will be sent to the NA Speaker, which will then move forward with the formation of a parliamentary committee.”

After the Premier’s formal request, the Speaker will then ask the parliamentary leaders to submit a name for the committee. He clarified, “The committee will be formed on the basis of the party’s representation in the National Assembly, and the names will be included in proportional.”

It is appropriate to know that the five -year term of CEC Alexander Sultan Raja ended January 26 with two other Election Commission members, Nisar Ahmed Durrani (Sindh) and Shah Muhammad Jatoi (Balochistan).

The procedure for appointment of members of the CEC and Election Commission is explained in Article 213 of the Constitution, in which the Prime Minister and the opposition leaders send three names to the President through consensus.

If there is no agreement on the names, the prime minister and the opposition leaders will send their names to their parliamentary committee, after which the National Assembly Speaker will form a 12 -member parliamentary committee, which will have equal representation from the treasury and opposition benches.

The committee will send a name to the president by these names for approval after a consensus.

According to Article 217, the CEC will take over as the Election Commissioner, at the expiry of the term of employment, and in the absence or space of its absence, the senior member will accept these responsibilities.

Two other members of the electoral institution have to spend more than two years, as Punjab Babar Hassan Bharawana will expire on May 29, 2027, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Member Justice (Rated) Ikramullah Khan will end on May 31, 2027.

However, due to deep political polarization, there was no deliberate indication between the Prime Minister and the opposition leader in the National Assembly.

The PTI has already challenged the Islamabad High Court challenging the delay in the appointment of a new CEC earlier this year with Ayub and Senate opposition leader Shobeli Son on the matter.

The petition has been named as the Federal Government, the Chairman of the Senate, the National Assembly Speaker, and the ECP as respondents.