A staggering Rs33.5 billion was spent on the controversial February 8 general elections, which were marred by widespread allegations of unprecedented rigging.
The ECP statement revealed that this expenditure far exceeded the Rs28 billion spent on the 2018 general elections. The poll body claimed it had tried to “reduce the expenses as much as possible” for the 2024 polls, but the final bill still amounted to Rs33.5 billion.
This contradicts earlier statements by the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and PTI Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan, who had claimed that only Rs14.5 billion was spent on the 2024 elections and that the ECP had sought a “far greater” electoral budget from the previous government in an attempt to delay the polls.
The February 8 elections were highly contentious, with the ECP and its Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja facing intense public and political scrutiny over allegations of rigging.
The breakdown of the EMS (Election Management System) on election night further fueled suspicions, as candidates backed by PTI were leading before the system failure, only to lose their leads once the EMS was restored.
The ECP has struggled to provide convincing explanations for the EMS collapse and the sudden disruption of mobile and internet services on Election Day, which it had earlier claimed would not affect results transmission.
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The electoral body’s directive to provincial election commissioners and returning officers to issue results within half an hour or face strict action also raised eyebrows, as this directive was never implemented.
As Pakistan grapples with the aftermath of the contentious February 8 elections, the revelation of the staggering Rs33.5 billion price tag is likely to further heighten public concerns over the integrity of the democratic process.
