Rs33.5 billion spent on Feb 8 polls: ECP

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Monday said the February 8 nationwide general elections had cost Rs33.5 billion.

Reacting to the reported allegations leveled by the PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub during a private television show, a spokesperson for the Election Commission said, “Omar Ayub is resorting to misstatement about the chief election commissioner and the members of the Election Commission and doing unfounded propaganda against them.”

He said Omar Ayub claimed that Rs14.5 billion had been incurred on the holding of the last elections, whereas the Election Commission had demanded much more from the government of that time.

“By demanding such massive amounts, the Election Commission had provided an opportunity to the government to postpone the elections,” he contended. The fact, the ECP spokesperson pointed, was that the expenditures incurred on the conduct of the general elections in 2018 were over Rs28 billion and in that context, and keeping in view the inflation rate and increase in the numbers of voters and polling stations as well as the polling staff, the estimate of the February 8 polls was made.

However, he continued that on its part, the Election Commission tried its utmost to spend minimum amounts in the last elections but even then Rs33.5 billion was spent on the nationwide exercise.

The Election Commission will resume hearing concerning the PTI intra-party elections today (Tuesday). According to the cause list, uploaded on the Election Commission’s website, a three-member bench, headed by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja and consisting of Justice (retd) Ikram Ullah Khan and Shah Muhammad Jatoi will hear the case with focus on the documents submitted by the party.

Notices have already been issued to Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Omar Ayub Khan. As the matter of intra-party polls was pending, the Election Commission has kept the PTI as a headless party in its revised list of 166 political parties and one alliance.