A senior leader of the Awami League (AL) of Bangladesh yesterday assured the country that a non-partisan and acceptable election commission (EC) will be constituted to supervise the 2019 general election.
AL presidium member Abdur Razzak said President Abdul Hamid will hold a meeting with all stakeholders, including civil societies, and take their opinion before reconstituting the EC.
“We firmly believe that he (president) will take the step in the light of the constitution so that everybody will have confidence on the next election
commission,” the AL leader said.
“We want the next parliamentary election to be free, fair and acceptable to all. Please keep trust on us,” Razzak said while speaking at a roundtable.
The Election Working Group (EWG), a platform of 28 civil society organisations, organised the roundtable.
BNP standing committee member Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, Jatiya Party (JP) presidium member Ziauddin Ahmed Bablu, eminent lawyer Dr Shahdeen Malik, noted local government expert Dr Tofail Ahmed, former election commissioner Sakhawat Hussain and civil society Shushasoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan) president M Hafiz Uddin Khan, The Hunger Project country director Dr Badiul Alam Mazumder, among others, also spoke at the function.
The tenure of the existing EC expires in February.
The country’s politics could heat up again over the process of forming a new EC, which would oversee the 2019 general election.
The ruling Awami League-led alliance wants the new EC to be formed by a search committee under the jurisdiction of the president, a power vested in him by the constitution.
On the other hand, the BNP-led 20-party alliance and other political parties want dialogue with all stakeholders before formation of such a committee.
They have warned the government against any move to have a ‘subservient election commission’.
Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury said the present election commission is running an election project. The main operation of the project is to elect public representatives with voting system.
“But they want to keep away people from voting,” he said.
He urged all to work for election oversight system permanently based on national
consensus.
The BNP standing committee member said the acceptability will begin with search committee. If it is not an acceptable one, everything will be unacceptable in this connection.
Former election commissioner Hussain said a neutral EC alone cannot hold a free and fair election. “All stakeholders must have goodwill to hold a free and fair election.”
EWG director Abdul Alim presented keynote paper at the roundtable.
The paper recommended revision of Article 48 (3) of the constitution where the president needs to consult with the prime minister to appoint chief election commissioner (CEC) and election commissioners (ECs).
It said the search committee could have seven members, including the chairman. A judge of the Supreme Court should be the head of the committee. Six other members could be the outgoing CEC, Public Service Commission chairman, Comptroller and Auditor General, Anti-Corruption Commission chairman and two members from civil society.
The 2014 parliamentary poll that saw Sheikh Hasina forming the present government was boycotted by major Bangladesh Nationalist Party alleging
irregularities.