The newly appointed Chinese ambassador, Zhang Zuo, today said that there is no quick solution to Rohingya crisis.

Zhang Zuo said this while addressing journalists for the first time at a press briefing held at the Chinese embassy in Dhaka this afternoon.

Some seven lakh Rohingyas fled persecution in Myanmar and entered Bangladesh following a military crackdown on them in Rakhine since August 25 last year.

The Chinese ambassador said that his country hopes next parliamentary election in Bangladesh will be smooth.

Zuo replaced Ma Mingqiang, who completed his tenure in Bangladesh and already left the country for his new assignment.

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TREES, HILLS RAZED by ROHINGYAS

Zuo was born in February 1969 in Xuanwei County of Yunnan Province. He has a PhD in Management, according to the official website of the Chinese embassy.

Diplomatic sources said the newly-appointed Chinese ambassador (designated) to Bangladesh arrived in Dhaka on February 12 and presented copy of this credentials to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on February 14.

Ambassador Ma left Dhaka in December late to attend envoys conference in Beijing but he did not return to Dhaka for his farewell meetings with the president, prime minister, foreign minister and others.

Chinese embassy in Dhaka had earlier fixed the appointments, but the outgoing ambassador did not return to Dhaka, added the sources.

The Election Commission (EC) will hold an electoral dialogue with journalists and media personalities on August 16 and 17 as a part of its election roadmap.

READ MORE: Civil Society Talks with EC: Call for army in polls, 'no vote' system

“Talks with journalists from online and television channels will be held on August 16 while with print journalists and media personalities on August 17,” EC Secretary Muhammad Helal Uddin Ahmed told The Daily Star today.

The dialogue is likely to begin at 11:00am at the EC Secretariat in Dhaka, he added.

The EC earlier had invited 59 civil society members to join the talks in which 35 participated while some others expressed their inability to attend for personal reasons.

In the talks, most civil society members spoke for restoring “no vote” system and ensuring a level-playing field for all political parties to hold the next election in a free, fair and participatory manner.

Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader today said the present government led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina itself will act as the supportive government during the next general election.

"BNP chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia went to the bank of River Thames (London) after making announcement of anti-government agitation. The agitation programme of BNP now remains confined in the vanity bag of Khaleda Zia. Let her come back to the country first, then we will see," Quader said.

He came up with the remarks while addressing a reunion of former students of Basurhat Government High School in Companiganj in Noakhali.

Presided over by Companiganj upazila vice-chairman Azam Pasha Chowdhury Romel, the function was attended by Noakhali-3 lawmaker Mamunur Rashid Kiron, principal of the school Mohammad Nurul Amin and upazila Awami League president Khijir Hayat, among others.

"Being a former student of this school, I have been able to come this far. I hope you all would be able to achieve greater success than me. In spite of being a lady, our prime minister is now being lauded all across the world. Bangladesh is now being recognised as Digital Bangladesh. We have now achieved exceptional success in cricket being patronised by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina," Quader said.

Earlier in the morning, he visited Companiganj upazila health complex and expressed discontent over the absence of doctors and nurses at the hospital. He also ordered the civil surgeon to show causes over the matter.

Leaders of major political parties used the Eid holidays to campaign for the parliamentary elections scheduled for 2019.

Believing that the Eid holidays were a key opportunity for reaching out to a large number of constituents, leaders of ruling Awami League, the BNP and main opposition Jatiya Party rushed to their constituencies before Eid and campaigned throughout the holidays, said party leaders.

This year the presence of young politicians in their constituencies was significant and hundreds of party ticket hopefuls campaigned.

The party ticket hopefuls even distributed food and clothes among their constituents.

Those not MPs expressed their eagerness to run in 2019 while the incumbent lawmakers told their constituents that it was imperative they get elected again to finish their work.

The leaders sought the voters' blessings.

Even AL President Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia spoke about the elections in their Eid greeting speeches.

After exchanging Eid greetings at the Gono Bhaban, Hasina said, "We want cooperation from all ... we want to make the country free from hunger and poverty and make it a prosperous one as dreamt by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman."

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia while exchanging Eid greetings at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre said the next national election must be held under a supportive-government with the deployment of the army to install a pro-people administration to end public sufferings and ensure good governance.

The Election Commission has already drafted the roadmap for the next elections. The two major political parties have been internally preparing for the polls. 

Khaleda has sought votes for the BNP and had unveiled the party's Vision 2030. She said no MP would go unchallenged in the next polls.

BNP leaders believe that they would run in the next election whatever the situation.

A large number of AL leaders, especially young leaders, visited their constituencies and areas and sought people's blessing after Hasina declared that those with close ties with constituents would get party nominations.

Apart from incumbent AL MPs, young leaders like Ashim Kumar Ukil, Aminul Islam Amin, Badiuzzaman Bhuiyan Dablu, Afzal Hossain, Enamul Haque Shamim, Sujit Roy Nandi, ABM Reazul Kabir Kawsar, Marufa Akter Popy, Mahmud Hasan Ripon, Saifuzzaman Shikor, Shafi Ahmed, Ajoy Kar Khokan, Mainul Hossain Khan Nikil, Sajjad Shakib Badsha, Aktaruzzaman Babu, Sheikh Sohel Rana Tipu, Nafiul Karim Nafa, Badiuzzaman Shohagh, Zahiruddin Mahmud Lipton were seen campaigning in their areas.

Our Rangpur correspondent said a number of MP hopefuls of different parties visited constituencies of the district.

Local BNP leader Saiful Islam sought vote for BNP after the Eid congregation at Pirganj Eidgah while AL MP Ahasanul Hoque Chowdhury of Rangpur-2 sought vote for Boat in next polls. Boat is the electoral symbol of the AL.

Our Sylhet correspondent added that Khandakar Abdul Muktadir, adviser to the BNP chairperson, carried out a month-long campaign in Sylhet-1 constituency and expressed his desire to run in the next polls.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith is the incumbent MP of Sylhet-1.

Abdul Momen, younger brother of Muhith, Shahed Muhith, son of Muhith, and AL Organising Secretary Misbah Uddin Seraj also campaigned in the same constituency.

For the last few months, AL leaders Ashim Kumar Ukil, Reazul Kabir Kawsar, Badiuzzaman Bhuiyan Dablu, Afzal Hossain and Misbah Uddin Seraj have been staying mostly in their areas to campaign, sources said.

The Election Commission today announced that the chairman and councillor aspirants of the upcoming Union Parishad elections can submit their nomination papers to the district administration offices apart from the returning officers to avert any untoward incident.

The EC today sent letters to the district administrators and election officers concerned to make the move a success.

The EC came up with the decision as BNP has filed a complaint with the EC, saying their party-backed chairman aspirants were being barred by the ruling party leaders to submit the nomination papers to returning officers at over 80 UPs.

As per the electoral code of conducts of the UP polls, administrative officers of the district offices have been appointed as assistant returning officers, the letters signed by deputy secretary of the EC secretariat Samsul Alam said.

In the letter, the assistant returning officers have been asked to collect the nomination papers and to submit those to the returning officers with due security.