ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Tuesday directed the Chairman National Data and Registration Authority (NADRA) to ensure registration of citizens who have attained the age of 18 years so that they can be enlisted as voters in the election.He asked the Chairman NADRA to take immediate measures for issuance of ID cards to the young citizens of 18 years and above. The youth, he added, constitutes 65% of the population and are the future leaders of the country.The Prime Minister said the youth have an important role to play in the political and socio-economic future of the country.The Chairman NADRA apprised the Prime minister that so far more than 22.2 million free of cost CNICs (Computerized National Identity Cards) have been delivered to the youth by NADRA.
The Prime Minister said that it was a historic milestone of the democratic government and directed that this facility must continue till the completion of the registration process.The Prime Minister said that with the introduction of mandatory CNIC for casting vote in the next general election, the democratic government has set the foundations for free and fair elections – a precursor to stable, inclusive and democratic Pakistan. Every vote would be counted now, the Prime Minister said.The Prime Minister said that the passage of the Amendment in the Electoral Rolls Act, 1947 through the parliament is a monumental event in the democratic history of Pakistan as it fulfills the vision of the author of the Constitution of Pakistan, Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto to transfer the power to the people of Pakistan.This new law would end the possibility of usurping the power of the people through fraudulent elections for ever, the Prime Minister said.The Prime Minister also called upon the youth to come forward and play a decisive role in the future of their country as their vote would decide to shape the destiny of the nation by participating in the political process.
