Daily Times

Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz has said that Prime Minister Imran Khan is committed to introducing basic reforms and ending the role of money in the election process in the best interest of the country.

Talking to the media persons on Friday, he said the government wants to bring transparency in the electoral process to make the parliament a true representative of the people and this is not possible without abrogating the role of money in the sale and purchase of votes.

The minister said the people have now realised the importance of transparency in the Senate elections. He said the politics of money needs to be eliminated and candidates should be elected on the basis of their capabilities. He said that buying and selling of votes undermine democracy and moral values.

He said that Election Commission of Pakistan would also be strengthened to further enhance its performance. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) believes that eligible persons could not come forward in politics until misuse of money was controlled, he added.

He said the PTI’s desire and demand is that under proportional representation, the parties and alliances should get seats as per their strength in the electoral assemblies. Shibli said the PTI’s stance is justified and based on democratic principles and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had also hinted his inclination towards open voting.

The minister said the opposition is trying to confuse the people by mentioning the no confidence motion against the Senate chairman but that was an issue of internal rules of the house.

He said the opposition parties had agreed to amend the Constitution for an open ballot system in the Senate elections but they failed to do so despite ruling the country for ten years. Shibli said the PTI has a clear majority in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab and the government also enjoys the advantage of having resources but it is surrendering the advantage in the larger interest of the democratic system.

He said the PTI is the only party which expelled its members of the provincial assembly who violated the party discipline and voted for other candidates.

Senate Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting Chairman Senator Faisal Javed was also present on the occasion.