ISLAMABAD: Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is all set to complete the process of finalizing the computerized electoral rolls within stipulated time.
An ECP official expressed hopes that the process will be completed by National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) within next two weeks thereon to submit these rolls to the Commission for final publication.
"After the checking and verification of the rolls at ECP, the same have been forwarded to NADRA for data entry," the official told APP. "We hope that the rolls will be finalized by May 25 as per deadline."
"We estimate that NADRA will complete the data entry process within two weeks or so," he added.
About later entries, the official said, the process of voters entry into the electoral rolls only stops when the schedule for elections is announced.
Otherwise, any citizen who reaches the age limit of 18 years can approach any of the our offices at the district level and get his name registered on the basis of Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC).
"From now to onwards - once these rolls are finalized - the voters registration process will be automated. Every Pakistani who will get a CNIC, will also be registered as voter in the electoral rolls," he explained.
About complaints or errors in the existing rolls, he said, during display at 55000 display centers across the country no voter complained that his or her vote was missing from the voter lists. However, some requests regarding change of address had surfaced that were accordingly addressed.
When asked about the procedure to change the address or the constituency for vote casting, the official said, it has been simplified.
Any voter who desires to cast vote at a place other than mentioned in the voters' lists, should apply to any of our office in the district where the address has been registered or office in the district where the voter desires to get his vote registered.
"The ECP staffers on his request will delete his name from the list pertaining to the area mentioned in the list and enter in the list of area where he desires to cast vote," he explained.
"But, the entry will be at one place in the lists. No voter can now manage dual entry for his vote like the past."
The ECP is just close to culmination of a marathon exercise that had started some time back to remove anomalies from the voters' lists which contained over 37 million unverified votes. As shown by the record in some areas more than 60 percent votes could not be verified in the electoral rolls on whose basis the 2008 election was conducted.
"We are preparing error free rolls with fixing picture on the rolls as well as magnetized thumb impression to ascertain authenticity of the voters and to check bogus voting," he added.
"This is a revolutionary step in the history of ECP and a way forward to enhance credibility of polls and holding elections in free, fair and transparent manner."
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