NADRA to brief lawmakers on voting software for overseas Pakistanis

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has scheduled a briefing where National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) will present the electronic voting software for overseas Pakistanis. NADRA will brief parliamentarians and other stakeholders about the system that will enable expatriates to vote in the upcoming general elections.

In January this year, NADRA had notified the apex court that the software will be functional by April. The preliminary software has been developed that will allow overseas Pakistanis to cast their vote through the internet. At the beginning of April, NADRA gave a comprehensive briefing to the Chief Justice of Pakistan Saqib Nasir along with Justice Umer Ata Bandial and Justice Ijaz ul Ahsan.

Chief Election Commissioner Sardar Raza Khan and members of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) are required to be present for the briefing. The Supreme Court has made it mandatory for the following officials to attend this briefing:

• Two representatives of all 18 political parties represented in the Parliament and Provincial Assemblies
• Six members each from the Senate and the National Assembly nominated by the Speaker
• Senate Chairman
• Secretaries of Cabinet Division
• Ministry of Information Technology
• Ministry of Law and Justice
• Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs
• Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development
• Ministry of Interior
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

IT experts are welcomed by the ECP to join the briefing for third-party evaluating. These experts will be from National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Institute of Business Administration (IBA) and all Provincial Information Technology Boards.

The briefing is scheduled to be held on April 12th, 2018.