ECP conducts ‘successful’ trial run of EMS

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday said it “successfully” conducted a mock exercise of the Election Management System (EMS) on an experimental basis, yielding useful and encouraging results.

In a statement, an ECP spokesman pointed out that presiding officers, on the whole, managed to deliver results satisfactorily.

However, connectivity challenges at certain points during the exercise caused minor issues in transmitting results to some presiding officers. “These challenges are being promptly addressed,” the spokesperson added.

A comprehensive trial was initiated, involving the participation of Returning Officers’ offices at 859 locations nationwide, he said adding that this comprehensive test encompassed Fiber/DSL connectivity, EMS app log-in, usage, and the steps for results transmission and editing.

It effectively accomplished the transmission of results by Presiding Officers and the compilation of results by Returning Officers through EMS. It’s noteworthy that the primary goal of EMS is to compile and tabulate results at the RO level. Throughout this exercise, all ROs completed the compilation and tabulation of results without encountering any issues.

If a presiding officer encounters difficulty in transmitting results to the RO via mobile phone, they are instructed to personally deliver the election results to the RO’s office.

Read More: ECP makes SMS service 8300 free of charge

A day earlier, the ECP delegated the powers of a first-class magistrate to District Returning Officers (DROs) and Returning Officers (ROs) to ensure the seamless execution of the general elections 2024.

According to the ECP notification, magisterial powers were conferred upon District Returning Officers (DROs) and Returning Officers (ROs) in accordance with Section 193 of the Election Act 2017.

These powers can be utilized by ROs and DROs during the general elections for national and provincial assemblies in Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan until the official announcement of final results for the candidates.

Returning Officers (ROs) and District Returning Officers (DROs) have the authority to initiate action against candidates who breach the code of conduct prescribed by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).