Findings misrepresented

The Election Working Group (EWG) issued a statement on Friday claiming that its monitoring of Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) polls was published inappropriately in some media reports.

After the June 26 GCC polls, EWG arranged a press conference on Thursday to share its findings on the election, says a EWG release. A statement provided to the media in this regard read EWG observers found 159 electoral irregularities in 46.5 percent of the centres they had visited.

However, this information has been used inappropriately in some news reports, it claims in the release.

Some headlines on the event read: “EWG 46.5% Kendre Oniom Peyechhe” or EWG finds irregularities at 46.5 percent centres; “46.5 Satangsa Kendre Oniom” or irregularities at 46.5 percent centres; “46.5% Kendre Nirbachan Sushthu Hoyni” or election is not fair at 46.5 percent centres; and “Gazipur city polls not fair: EWG”.

In the release, EWG explains that it visited 129 or 30.4 percent of the total 425 centres.

According to its primary statement, EWG found irregularities in 60 centres, which is 46.5 percent of the visited 129 centers. Secondly, EWG claims it never said in the statement that the election was "not held fairly".

Of the 159 electoral irregularities, 30 incidents involved presence of unauthorised persons at the centres, 28 incidents involved campaigning within 400 yards radius of the centre, and 24 incidents were of providing transportation for voters by candidates, the release added.