Tentative date for polls after June: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda yesterday said the commission (EC) is considering announcement of a tentative date for national elections after June as the final draft of voter list will be in their hands by then.
“The date will be announced after June. We'll try and see if something can be done at that time,” the CEC told reporters as he was asked when the EC would announce the date for holding the stalled polls.
The final draft of voter list will be completed by the end of June, and at that time the EC will see whether a date can be announced or not, he added.
The CEC was talking to the reporters after an hour-long meeting with a five-member UNDP delegation headed by visiting UNDP Administrator Kemal Dervis. UNDP Resident Coordinator Reneta Dessallien accompanied the delegation.
Emerging from the meeting, the visiting UNDP administrator, whose agency is assisting poll-preparatory works, observed that there is no reason for elections not going to be held as per the Election Commission -announced roadmap.
“It shouldn't be, and elections should be done removing obstacle, if any,” Kemal Dervis told the journalists when asked if he thinks election would be held as per the roadmap.
Asked about the UNDP-supported ongoing project on voter listing, the UN agency administrator said a correct voter list is a precondition for an acceptable election and the current voter list, which is the one being prepared, is comparatively more flawless than the past one.
He pointed out that there are some specific and common problems with voter lists in different countries in the world, and he shared his experiences of other countries with the EC.
Asked if discussion took place on national and local elections between them, Dervis said they discussed the issues of national elections.
He said the EC told them that preparation is going on regarding the national elections, such as holding dialogue with the political parties, and there are some technical problems that are commonly seen in other countries also.
Election Commissioner M Sohul Hussain was present at the meeting.