SIX years ago, one of the rarest moments of consensus was achieved under the then PTI government when prime minister Imran Khan and leader of the opposition Shehbaz Sharif agreed on a consensus candidate for one of the most important constitutional positions for a struggling democracy like Pakistan. After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing, Shehbaz Sharif and his party, the PML-N, had agreed on Imran Khan’s proposed name of Sikandar Sultan Raja as the new chief election commissioner of Pakistan. Prior to that, Imran Khan and his party had bitterly criticised the previous CEC, justice (retired) Sardar Muhammad Raza Khan for his alleged bias and partisanship. Imran Khan had welcomed the appointment of Sikandar Raja as the new CEC and expressed relief that he and his party could, after all, expect fair treatment from the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
This sense of relief, however, did not last very long and Imran Khan started criticising the new CEC as well in the harshest of terms. After his removal as PM, he explained that he had proposed Mr Raja’s name at the behest of Gen Qamar Bajwa, then army chief, and he himself didn’t know anything about Mr Raja. This conduct had practically rendered meaningless the constitutional scheme of appointing the CEC and members of the ECP through consensus of the ruling party and the opposition.
Subsequent developments made CEC Raja and his colleagues in the ECP a prime target of the PTI’s criticism with its leader seeing the entire Commission as complicit in depriving the party of its election symbol, holding the PTI responsible for receiving prohibited foreign funding and stripping it of reserved seats during the 2024 election cycle.
As Mehmood Khan Achakzai has finally assumed the mantle of the new leader of the opposition, another rare opportunity is at hand to appoint a new consensus CEC and two ECP members, without allowing consensus to be induced by a third party. If free, fair and credible elections have to be ensured, the new appointees should not only be strictly non-partisan but also brave enough to withstand any external pressure to influence the outcome of the election — certainly, a tall order.
One hopes that the PM and opposition leader strive for a consensus on the next CEC.
The consultation on the appointment of the CEC and ECP members should ideally be initiated about three months before the expiry of the incumbents’ term to ensure the timely completion of the consultative process between the leaders of the House and opposition and in the parliamentary committee. But fresh appointments have generally been made after a delay which has even extended to more than a year.
Before the 26th Constitutional Amendment of 2024, the CEC and ECP members would retire upon the completion of their terms. But after the amendment, incumbents can indefinitely continue in their positions until their successors assume office. The government, which seems to be quite happy with the incumbents, therefore, doesn’t lose anything by continuing with the status quo. The opposition, especially the PTI, on the other hand, would like to see the incumbents replaced as soon as possible, so it is in the interest of the opposition to actively participate in the consultative process mandated by the Constitution.
The process is usually initiated by the PM and this is what Shehbaz Sharif did by formally inviting Omar Ayub, the former leader of the opposition, for a consultative meeting in May last year. Sadly, Omar Ayub, instead of accepting the invitation, refused to meet the PM and, instead, asked the Speaker of the National Assembly to constitute a parliamentary committee for the purpose. But, as per the Constitution, the parliamentary committee cannot be formed before the consultation between the PM and leader of the opposition has concluded. The opportunity for making headway on the fresh appointments of CEC and ECP members was, therefore, lost.
It is hoped that PM Shehbaz Sharif will extend a fresh invitation to the new leader of the opposition to meet and hold consultations on the three pending appointments in the ECP. It is also hoped that Mr Achakzai, unlike his predecessor, will not miss the opportunity and strive to reach a consensus. If they can agree on three names for each position, it would become easier for the parliamentary committee to pick a candidate for each position. The consensus between the PM and opposition leader can’t be ruled out because, after all, Imran Khan and Shehbaz Sharif had once agreed on the name of a new CEC back in 2020. Even if the two do not agree on the names, the process would move forward as each would then give three names for each position, which would mean that the parliamentary committee would have to consider six names for each position and agree on one. This process would not be easy as the parliamentary committee would have equal representation from the ruling party and the opposition, as indicated in the Constitution, and a decision by the committee would be made by a two-thirds majority as provided in the committee rules. Reaching cross-party consensus in a 12-member committee will be more complicated and the process may stall for a long time. It will, therefore, be far better that a consensus is reached during the meeting of the PM and opposition leader.
The constitutional provision prior to the 26th Amendment was more in conformity with the spirit of the basic law, ie, the CEC and ECP members should not expect an extension of their terms so they would not be tempted to extend any favours to the government. The provision of de facto extension in the tenures of the CEC and ECP members by allowing them to stay in their positions indefinitely under the 26th Amendment, runs counter to the original scheme. It is, therefore, much better to make fresh appointments in the ECP as soon as possible.
The writer is president of the Pakistan-based think tank Pildat.
X: @ABMPildat
Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2026
