'The day was fine,' says CEC
Staff Correspondent
The chief election commissioner (CEC) and election commissioners (ECs) were busy with their usual tasks yesterday as opposition demonstrators were locked in fierce battle with law enforcers in their bid to lay siege to the EC Secretariat demanding resignation of the CEC and ECs. "The day was fine," CEC Justice M A Aziz said while leaving office at 4:45pm when reporters asked him how he passed the day. Asked about the opposition demand for his resignation, he said, "No comments". He however said, "It is a democratic country and the reason behind the movement is political. So, I cannot comment on it because I am not a politician. "Movement took place in the past and will take place in future also. But I want to work with all and I hope everything will be okay."Sources said the CEC and three ECs yesterday came to office and left it on time.The authorities tightened security and deployed additional forces to ensure security at and around the EC Secretariat. Law enforcers set up a barricade on the road beside the nearby Bangladesh-China friendship Centre. And the road from Bijoy Sharani to Agargaon was off limits to motor vehicles during the opposition programme. At 10:00 am, the CEC sat in a meeting with his colleagues at his office on updated voter list, which might be finalised today. The meeting continued till 2:30pm with a break for about an hour from noon. The three ECs -- S M Zakaria, Justice Mahfuzur Rahman and Mahmud Hasan Monsur-- attended the meeting. Reaction to Eight-foot long pen In reply to a question on eight-foot long pens given by the National Unity Front (NUF) on Tuesday for signing resignation letters of the CEC and the ECs, Justice Aziz said, "Unfortunately, I did not see those." He however said, "I have studied a lot but I have never seen such pens". EC officials said Tejgaon police took away the pens given by the NUF .
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