Arif Alvi, Shafqat Mahmood, Shireen Mazari opposed EVMs in 2016-17: Ishaq Dar

LONDON: Senior PML-N leader Ishaq Dar has claimed that the PTI lawmakers, who are nowadays vociferously advocating the electronic voting machines (EVMs) as a panacea for all election disputes, had opposed the machines in 2016-2017.

In a brief chat with the reporters Friday, the former finance minister revealed that a special committee of all the parliamentary parties in the National Assembly, including the PTI, had discarded the proposal for employing the EVMs for general elections after 30 meetings.

“PTI leaders Dr Arif Alvi, Shafqat Mahmood and Dr Shireen Mazari were also members of the committee who shared the views of the fellow members,” Ishaq Dar said.

Dar said he was heading the committee and all the members, including the PTI parliamentarians, had unanimously rejected the proposal on the grounds that such a system was not compatible with Pakistan’s condition.

The PML-N leader further said the machine is not feasible to conduct fair polls as it would be incorrect to assume that the EVM is a modern technology in any manner.

“Several countries have given up the use of EVM,” he pointed out.

The PTI government had managed to pass bills related to electoral reforms including the use of EVMs and i-voting for the next elections.

ECP unsure about use of EVMs in next polls

Despite the required legislation to hold elections using electronic voting machines going through, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is still not sure if EVMs will actually be used in the next polls.

This observation from the ECP came during a meeting of the members of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Law and Justice, chaired by PTI MNA Riaz Fatyana on Thursday.

It took India 20 years and Brazil 22 years to start using these machines, ECP Secretary Omar Hamid Khan had told lawmakers, explaining that it will also take them "a while" to get EVMs up and running.

The ECP official had said there are challenges in using EVMs and they cannot say anything with surety on whether the use of EVMs will be applicable in the next elections or not.

Khan had said EVMs would have to go through 14 steps before they can be used in the next general elections. There would be three to four more pilot projects related to the use of the EVMs, he had maintained.

“How many EVMs will there be at a polling station also remains to be figured out,” he had said, adding that the state institution is working to facilitate overseas Pakistanis.