BOA polls today

It will be all Kutubuddin Ahmed versus Golam Quddus Chowdhury Babu when the much-awaited election of the Bangladesh Olympic Association (BOA) takes place today.
Although there will voting for four posts in the first BOA election in seven years, all eyes will be on the two veteran sports organisers who vie for the magnetic post of secretary-general.
Already, 29 members of the 37-post executive committee have been elected unopposed.
Chief of Army Staff General Moeen U Ahmed has been re-elected president of the BOA while the otherwise new-look organisation will have Mizanur Rahman Manu, Maj Gen Ashabuddin, Sirajul Islam Bachchu, Khondokar Jamil Uddin and Mushfiqa Ikfat as vice-presidents, Lt Com AK Sarkar, Mohiuddin Bulbul and Ferdous Ara Khanam as deputy secretaries-general and Sanaul Haque Bakul as its treasurer.
The 76 councillors will cast their votes from 10am to 3pm at the NSC conference room.
Babu, president of the Bangladesh Volleyball Federation, is a former secretary-general (1998-2000) who is fighting against the wind. A united panel was submitted by Kutub, who has been acting secretary-general since the death of BOA's good old chief executive Zafar Imam, the mercurial organiser who passed away in 2004.
"Even if I get a few votes, I will contest this election with sporting spirit," Babu had said after submitting his nomination paper.
However, it seems that Babu has already attracted more than a 'few' voters. Councillors who have failed to gain places in the so-called 'acceptable to all' panel led by Kutub could eventually vote for Babu.
There had been complaints against Kutub that as acting secretary, the successful businessman gave little time to BOA, paving way for a paid official of the organisation to become a dominating force in recent years.
It was also learned that Kutub threw a dinner party last night to calm the councillors.
"I admit that I have given little time to BOA but I vow that if elected, I will be regular," Kutub promised.
"My aim will be to take BOA ahead. I want BOA to be the players' organisation where sports will be in the field all through the year," he added.
Babu, on the other hand, has gone to the councillors asking for their consideration.
"BOA has many things to offer to sports. My dream is to spread sports into different corners of the country. The BOA chief also wants that. I also want to bring back transparency in financial matters of the organisation. I also feel that all BOA activities should have acceptability to all," told Babu on the eve of the polls.
Although the 'acceptable to all' panel was presented after a lot of thoughts, some miscalculation could not be avoided and four names were nominated for the three posts of members as divisional representatives.
Four candidates -- Asaduzzaman Khasru (Barisal), Begum Lily Aziz (Chittagong), Qutubuddin Aksir (Dhaka) and Mahmud Jamal (Rajshahi) -- will compete for the posts of three executive members from the divisional quotas.
Two nominations have been cancelled as Abdus Sattar Nini, a Commonwealth Games gold medallist shooter, was made a councillor as an Olympian, which he is not. His councillorship has also been cancelled by the Election Commission headed Brig Gen Shawkat Hossain.
Also, Rafia Akhter Dolly submitted her nomination for the members' post but as a nominee of the Patron, the councillor is ineligible to compete for this post.
Election can later be held to fill these gaps but the new committee will be of maximum 35 members as there is no representative of the IOC while a place for the Women's Sports Federation has fell vacant.