EC in upazila soup
The Election Commission (EC) is looking at an avalanche of unexpected extra work with only eight days left for the upazila parishad elections, as many candidacy seekers previously disqualified by returning officers, are showing up with court orders reinstating them as candidates.
The EC faced a similar situation just 10 days before the recent parliamentary election, as many disqualified applicants were reinstated as candidates by court orders back then too.
But the magnitude of chaos is much bigger this time around, since the numbers of candidates and constituencies are much higher in upazila polls.
Sources in the EC Secretariat said they already received names of around 30 previously disqualified applicants who got reinstated as candidates after filing writ petitions with the High Court.
The EC now must take additional preparations to ensure their candidacies in the January 22 elections to 481 upazila parishads.
Many reinstated candidates are going to the offices of returning officers' (ROs) with the court orders to get registered as candidates. The EC Secretariat, however, is yet to determine the exact number of such candidacy seekers.
Meanwhile, the EC asked local administrations not to provide protocol privileges to any member of the cabinet of ministers if any of them visit any upazila during the polls.
In a letter to the cabinet division, it also requested the cabinet members to refrain from participating in any upazila election campaign since those are non-partisan in nature, sources in the EC Secretariat said.
About inclusion of candidates reinstated by court orders in the race, EC Secretariat officials said the increase in the number of candidates will be an extra burden on them, complicating the electoral process more than it already is.
The EC already completed printing 80 percent of the ballot papers to be cast for electing chairmen, vice-chairmen, and women vice-chairmen to reserved seats.
It is now printing the remaining 20 percent, for the upazilas where more than 10 candidates are contesting for each post.
Earlier, the EC printed 80 percent of the ballot papers with ten symbols on them for each post.
If the numbers of candidates increase to more than 10 in the upazilas where the numbers were 10 or below, the EC will have to print fresh ballot papers for those upazilas to accommodate the contenders reinstated by court orders.
"An increase in the number of candidates at the last moment might hamper the electoral process, it has already caused some extra burden on us," said an EC Secretariat official, seeking anonymity.
The official however said they will finally be able to manage the extra burden with much difficulty, but if the number keeps rising it will become too difficult to handle.
The ROs, who completed allotment of electoral symbols to contenders, will now have to assign symbols to the newly reinstated candidates, a task they were clearly not anticipating.
Citing a burning example of the hassle, an EC Secretariat official yesterday said the woman vice-chairman of Alamdanga upazila parishad in Chuadanga was declared elected uncontested to the reserved seat and all ballot papers allotted for the election to the post were also re-allotted to another upazila, but all that had to be reversed because a candidacy seeker suddenly appeared with a court order.
MINISTERIAL PROTOCOL PRIVILEGES SUSPENDED IN UPAZILAS DURING POLLS
The EC on Sunday directed local administrations not to provide protocol privileges to ministers, state ministers, deputy ministers, lawmakers or any other person enjoying the status of a minister, if they visit any upazila during the elections.
The order was issued through a circular to deputy commissioners, superintendents of police, additional deputy commissioners (general), upazila executive officers, and all election officials.
The EC also sent a letter to the cabinet division requesting government high-ups not to visit any upazila during the elections, and not to participate in any election campaign.
If any of the dignitaries, however, is a registered voter in any particular upazila, he or she may go there to cast the vote.
A senior EC official said even if people of such status visits a constituency during the upazila elections and gets a reception, he or she must be careful not to allow any candidate attend that event.
If any candidate joins such a programme, the election there might lose its non-partisan character, the official stressed.
Comments