The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has finalized the Code of Conduct for political parties and contesting candidates for the general elections scheduled for February 2024. As said the Election regulator has consulted political groups and their feedback/ suggestions have also been included in the Code of Conduct draft. According to the proposed draft, political parties will not speak against the sovereignty of the state and will avoid ridiculing the ECP during their election campaign.
Political parties and candidates will avoid gifts, greed, or bribes to opposing candidates to withdraw in their favor and will ensure the protection of the election staff and polling agents. Political parties and their candidates will strongly refrain from encouraging violence on polling day, displaying weapons and spreading fear/harassment during the election campaign. Meanwhile, the ECP froze the MNA’s election campaign expenses at Rs. 10 million while the MPA’s expense ceiling had been fixed at Rs. 4 million for the current election season.
Political culture in Pakistan has been influenced by various factors, including historical events, socio-economic conditions, and geopolitical rivalries. Communal enmity, particularly between different religious or ethnic communities, has been a challenge in the country’s political landscape. Tribal and ethnic conflicts, power struggles, and issues of identity have contributed to this animosity, seriously affecting the social fabric and political dynamics of the South Asian nation. Pakistani politicians and political groups have shaped the democratic process into a lucrative business while the personal ego has always polluted the political process and poisoned the electoral environment in the country.
Meanwhile, Political groups always issued their party tickets to influential electables including feudals, landlords, proscribed persons, criminals and crooks while the public mostly voted on ethnic, sectarian or communal basis instead of personal traits, idology, or electoral manifestos of the candidates. So far, neither an educated middle class candidate received public backing, nor feudals, religious clerics, landlords and members of political dynasties ever failed in the polls. Besides formulating the code of conduct, the ECP must strictly implement the criteria for the election candidates, and educate voters, so only good character, well-educated, civilized individuals reach high offices and represent the nation at the global level.
