KARACHI - Degrees of 77 out of 189 former parliamentarians on Saturday were proved genuine as the time allowed for the ex-legislators to get their degrees verified was expired.
A list of dubious degrees will be forwarded to the Election Commission of Pakistan.
According to reports, 80 former parliamentarians approached the Higher Education Commission for verification of their education documents.
Most of the former lawmakers failed to contact the HEC to have their educational certificates verified within April 5 deadline set by a three-member Supreme Courts’ bench.
Those who were cleared by the HEC include Khursheed Shah, Chaudhry Nisar, Amir Muqam, Javed Hashmi and others.
Talking to media here, HEC chairman Javed Leghari said the apex court had ordered verification of degrees of 183 MPs, however, degrees of 77 members had been verified and five more are under scrutiny. He said 100 ex-parliamentarians had not contacted the HEC.
He said doors of HEC for ex-MPs have been shut and only the credentials submitted earlier would be verified. The chairman said their job was to verify the degrees only, adding disqualifying anyone was not the function of HEC. He said details would be submitted to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) today.
TRANSPARENT POLLS: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam leader Aslam Ghauri said that the interim government was not playing independent character while it seems as continuation of previous political regime.
He expressed these views while talking to the JUI’s candidates for the upcoming polls here on Saturday.
Ghauri said that some political parties’ candidates had filed nomination with Sindh government protocol and the former govt unemployed schemes were still in use and that puts a question mark on the neutrality of ECP. He said that before the establishment of caretaker governments, the transfers and exchanges had been massive, even out-of-turn promotions were made. He termed it pre-poll rigging.
He said that the nomination form was much complicated and without the assistance of a lawyer, it cannot be filled while the addition of NTN and bank account issues had made it difficult for all the political workers.
He added that it seems that the polls are meant for the capitalists of the country and poor candidates have been ignored by making the process difficult and complicated while ECP has become a silent viewer during all the process. Ghauri said that the world was eyeing the upcoming general elections and transparent and impartial polls were essential for directing the future of the country in correct direction. He further stated that in these circumstances, the ECP should play important role to hold fair and free election.
Earlier, the JUI have announced the names of the candidates for 12 of National and 24 provincial constituencies of Karachi.