EC should comprise bold, efficient persons
The Election Commission (EC) should be reconstituted with persons capable of discharging duties boldly and efficiently, said former chief election commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda at a roundtable in the capital yesterday.
“If the commission is not strong enough, how will it play a supervisory role over the government agencies during election periods?” he pointed out referring to news reports on the January 11 dialogue between President Abdul Hamid and the Awami League (AL).
The reports said the AL placed an 11-point proposal, including empowering the EC with supervising authority over the administration, law enforcement agencies and all other departments engaged in the election process.
Shushashoner Jannoy Nagorik (SHUJAN), a citizens' platform advocating for good governance, organised the roundtable, “Draft of the proposed law on appointing election commissioners and related thoughts”, at Jatiya Press Club.
Huda emphasised scrutinising beforehand backgrounds of probable CECs and election commissioners.
“...whether they were involved with any political party in the past, even in their student life…It will not be right if anyone who was involved with a particular party is appointed in the commission,” he said.
“The nation will be grateful to the president if he constitutes a good commission,” said Huda.
Former election commissioner M Sakhawat Hussain said people capable of taking accurate decisions amid adverse political situations should be appointed.
He suggested the upcoming EC to regularly hold dialogues with all the stakeholders, including political parties and the government.
Eminent columnist Syed Abul Maksud called upon the two major political parties, AL and BNP, to reach consensus over the reconstitution of the EC under which the next parliament election would be held.
Presenting a keynote paper, SHUJAN Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar demanded formulation of a law on the reconstitution.
All the ECs since independence were reconstituted in the absence of a proper legal framework violating the constitution and any repetition may face legal challenges, he said.
The law should have detailed guidelines on forming a search committee for appointing the CEC and election commissioners, he said.
SHUJAN President M Hafizuddin Khan moderated the programme where several politicians, academicians and rights activists spoke.
The present EC's tenure expires on February. The president started holding dialogues with political parties from December 18 for constituting the new EC through consensus. Till date, 23 political parties joined the talks.
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