During a meeting with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday, Imdad Ullah Bosal, the Pakistani Finance Secretary, assured the commission that funds will be released in a few days for upcoming elections.
After he was summoned by the electoral body over the non-provision of election funds, Bosal provided an assurance after he was sent a notice by the electoral body to present himself.
As Pakistan prepares to hold general elections on February 8th 2024, this development came at the time when the country is preparing for general elections.
The secretary stated that the Finance Ministry will release the necessary funds by the Election Commission in order to facilitate the election. A letter written by the Electoral Agency on November 14 was received by the Ministry of Interior on November 18 as soon as it was sent by the electoral body.
“Funds disbursed need to be approved at different levels before they can be released,” said the secretary.
Following a meeting with the Executive Committee of the Parliament, the secretary was speaking to the press.
According to sources cited by Geo News, the secretary had arrived at the ECP within a few minutes of hearing that the ECP had taken note of the government’s unwillingness to provide funds to the project.
The sources said the current financial year’s budget had allocated Rs42 billion to the general elections, which will be held later this year. Sources have told us that so far, Rs10 billion has been provided by the Finance Ministry, according to the sources.
According to the sources, there has been a delay in the disbursement of the remaining amount, without any reasonable explanation for the delay.
A total of Rs17 billion is urgently needed in order for the general elections to be held on February 8th.”
Geo News has been informed that the Finance Ministry has been repeatedly contacted and a written reminder has also been sent to the ministry to inform it that the money must be provided as soon as possible.
It is worth noting, however, that there has not yet been a positive response regarding the disbursement of funds, they stated.
The Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan, Sikandar Sultan Raja, has decided to inform Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar that the finance ministry appears to be struggling to provide funds for this election due to the fact the ministry appears to be experiencing financial difficulties.
According to the sources, the premier is also being sent a more detailed letter along with the letter, which is included in the letter.
General elections to be held in 2024
It is now just a matter of time before Pakistan goes to the polls for its upcoming elections set for February 8, 2024. During the run up to the upcoming elections, all the political parties have been gearing up for the face off, while the ECP has notified the final list of constituencies that will be delineated for the National Assembly and the four provincial assemblies.
As well as the announcement of the election schedule, the electoral watchdog is also expected to announce it this week. The list of final boundaries was originally supposed to be published on December 15 but has since been revised to be published on November 30.
In its notification, the ECP confirmed that the National Assembly consists of 266 seats in full, 60 of which are reserved for women, and another 10 seats are reserved for non-Muslims according to Article 51(3) of the Constitution.
That news provided by timenews.
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