ECP appoints 17 officers to monitor Islamabad LB polls

ISLAMABAD, Nov 04 (APP):The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has appointed Additional Deputy Commissioner Uzair Ali Khan as District Monitoring Officer (DMO) and 16 other officers as monitoring officers to oversee compliance with the code of conduct during the December 20 local government elections in Islamabad and ensure transparency throughout the electoral process. According to a notification issued by the ECP on Wednesday, the 16 monitoring officers have been assigned specific groups of union councils across the federal capital to monitor electoral activities and report violations of the code of conduct. Assistant Director Anjum Hayat has been assigned Union Councils 1 to 3 and 122 to 125, while Research Officer Javed Iqbal will monitor Union Councils 4 to 10. Assistant Director Abdul Razzaq has been assigned Union Councils 11 to 15 and 17 to 19. Assistant Director Shahid Hussain will oversee Union Councils 16, 20 to 25 and 53, while Assistant Director Ghulam Murtaza will monitor Union Councils 26 to 31. CDA Assistant Director Usman Rashid has been assigned Union Councils 32 to 38, while CDA Assistant Director Syed Muhammad Osama Wasti will oversee Union Councils 39 to 46. CDA Town Planner Shaoor Ahmed will monitor Union Councils 50 to 52 and 54 to 59. Similarly, CDA Assistant Director Shabbir Hussain Sandhu has been assigned Union Councils 47 to 49 and 60 to 64; Zafar Ali Baloch, Union Councils 65 to 73; Ijaz Mahmood, Union Councils 74 to 80; and Ali Asghar, Union Councils 81 to 87. CDA Assistant Director Arif Ali will monitor Union Councils 88 to 95, while Azizur Rehman has been assigned Union Councils 96 to 100, 116 to 118 and 120. CDA Assistant Director Nisar Muhammad Khan will oversee Union Councils 101 to 108, while Muhammad Altaf has been assigned Union Councils 109 to 115 and 121. The ECP has also issued terms of reference (ToRs) for the DMO and monitoring officers, requiring them to take an oath under Section 56 of the Elections Act before assuming their responsibilities. Under the guidelines, monitoring teams will collect information from the district administration about public meetings, rallies and other political events. The district administration and other relevant authorities will be bound to provide the required information and assistance. Any violation of the code of conduct will be reported to the DMO on Form M-1 along with supporting evidence. The local administration will also appoint an officer of Grade 17 or above as a focal person, while police authorities will provide security to the monitoring teams. The DMO will maintain a record of all complaints received through Form M-2 and submit daily reports to the ECP. The monitoring teams will oversee pre-poll activities, election-day proceedings and post-poll developments to ensure compliance with electoral rules. The DMO will also be authorized to issue directions to relevant authorities in connection with monitoring responsibilities. Polling for Islamabad's local government elections is scheduled for December 20.