Pakistani Caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi stated on Saturday that the nation has implemented a "three-tiered system" to safeguard the security and integrity of the upcoming national elections, scheduled for 8 February, amid a surge in militant attacks in the country.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has delineated that security personnel stationed outside polling stations will be tasked with ensuring the security and safe transportation of ballot papers and polling bags.
"We have made comprehensive arrangements to guarantee the security and integrity of the process, providing security to polling stations through a three-tiered system", Solangi conveyed during a media briefing in Islamabad.
“Police [will be] taking the main responsibility in the first parameter, including the polling stations, with civil armed forces (Rangers and Frontier Corps) on the outer corridor parameter and Pakistan Army as the main quick reaction force on the outside parameter”, the minister noted.
The minister added that Pakistan has sufficient resources to guarantee a free, fair, and peaceful election process and that the army's rapid response team could reach any contentious location in under 10 minutes.
Solangi reported that over 100 international journalists and 92 foreign observers, including from Russia, Japan, South Africa, Zimbabwe, the Netherlands, Malaysia, Hungary, and Sweden, had been granted visas to observe the electoral process.