President Alvi calls a “urgent meeting” with the head of the ECP

ISLAMABAD: On Friday, President Dr. Arif Alvi calls an “urgent meeting” with the head of the ECP Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja on Monday, February 20, to discuss the election schedule.

In accordance with Section 57(1) of the Elections Act of 2017, which states that the President shall announce the date or dates of the general elections after consultation with the Election Commission of Pakistan, the meeting will take place at Aiwan-e-Sadr, according to a statement from the President’s Secretariat (ECP).

Asad Umar, the central general secretary of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), had stated the party’s intention to urge President Alvi, who is also a member, to use his constitutional authority to resolve the current crisis by announcing an election date in accordance with Article 57(1) of the Elections Act 2017.

In his letter to the CEC, the president expressed his displeasure over the apathy and inaction on the part of the ECP for not responding to his earlier letter as of yet and noted that significant developments had occurred since his letter dated February 8 (including the judgement of the Lahore High Court and recent observations of the Supreme Court).

President Alvi invites CEC for urgent meeting to discuss date of general elections

President Alvi added that he had been waiting frantically for the commission to recognise its constitutional obligations to move forward and act appropriately, but that he had been “very saddened” by the ECP’s “poignant approach” to this crucial issue.

Additionally, The president invited CEC to an urgent meeting in his office on February 20 to discuss the date or dates of the general elections as he was mindful of his constitutional duty to preserve, safeguard, and defend the Constitution, he reminded the ECP in his letter.

Following Imran Khan’s resignation as prime minister in April of last year, the PTI quit in large numbers. The PTI is claiming that early elections are the only way to end the country’s ongoing political unrest, despite the Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government’s ban on conducting general elections before August.