‘Listen to the people’
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) yesterday said it is necessary to finalise the law regarding formation of the Election Commission (EC), incorporating opinions of civil society and all stakeholders.
"If the law is passed without the opinions and scrutiny of stakeholders concerned and civil society, its acceptability will be questioned, and its effectiveness will not be assured. Therefore, there is no alternative to passing the law based on public opinion, giving utmost importance to public expectations."
In a statement, TIB executive director Dr Iftekharuzzaman demanded the draft law to be made available to all immediately.
"The sudden government step to enact the law for forming the election commission, which reflects the constitutional commitment and long-standing expectations of the people, is positive," the statement read.
It also said according to media reports, the law proposes the formation of an EC through a search committee as usual, which is consistent with international practice.
If the law is passed without the opinions and scrutiny of stakeholders concerned and civil society, its acceptability will be questioned, and its effectiveness will not be assured.
But the details of what is in the draft law, apart from setting some general criteria for the search committee, are still unknown to stakeholders and civil society.
Dr Iftekhar, in the statement, mentioned some concerns in particular, regarding whether there will be a woman representative in the search committee, the eligibility criteria of the two citizen representatives, the working procedure of the committee and publishing names proposed by it.
The statement also mentioned that an assurance provision should be incorporated in the law to ensure the qualifications, skills, experience, neutrality and acceptability of the chief election commissioner and other commissioners, and their determination to uphold a neutral and objective stance.
"The draft law should be immediately released and finalised based on views of stakeholders concerned and civil society. Otherwise, possibility of forming a free, fair and acceptable Election Commission, as per the expectations of citizens, will be thwarted again," read the statement.
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