I AM a government lecturer. I recently got my training to perform the duties of a presiding officer during elections on May 11 in Sindh. When I searched for the process of voting for the polling staff, I came to know that the polling staff cannot cast their vote in person and they can ask for a postal ballot application form beforehand.

When I read the procedure for the postal ballot, it seemed so long and complicated that I too had to agree with my seniors who say, “Why take too much trouble for casting a vote?”

There are a huge number of people who work as polling personnel on different polling stations all over Pakistan. They are deprived of their right to vote just because they perform their duty on the day of elections which it unfair.

The Election Commission of Pakistan should devise some easy and hassle - free procedure of voting for the polling staff as well so that they can also cast their vote along with others.

JAMILA SIAL Shahdadkot

Provincialism THIS is with reference to speeches by a former chief minister of Punjab during his election campaign. He said: “People of Karachi are enjoying life, while people of Punjab are punished with loadshedding.” In another speech, he said: “700 MW of electricity is being pulled from Punjab.”

We considered PML - N a national party and were hoping that they forgot the politics of ‘Changa Manga’, but these types of speeches would certainly boost the nationalist elements in other parts of the country.

We must avoid creating differences between provinces and think in broad spectrum.

KHURSHEED MEMON Karachi

Deforestation IN the current election campaign no political leader has ever raised the serious problem of deforestation, which is in progress these days in Chitral. It means that either they are afraid of the timber mafia, who will thwart their election campaign, or they have not realised the gravity of the situation which is getting worse.

If political leaders don’t raise their voice against serious environmental issues now, we must expect little or nothing from them after they are elected. They know for a fact now that an artificial harvesting or ‘green cutting’ is taking place in different forest areas of Chitral. But they have chosen to keep silent as this problem does not exist on the list of their election agenda. There is still some time left for them to take up this agenda in order to protect both our economy and our environment by way of protecting our green trees.

REHMAT ALI JAFFARDOST Chitral