EC all set for polls, referendum in Feb

The Election Commission
has wrapped up the bulk of its preparations to conduct the national polls and
the referendum, a rare twin political exercise slated for February.
At a meeting
yesterday, the EC cleared its final checklist. The election schedule will be
announced within this week, voting hours will be extended by an hour,
additional secret booths will be arranged where possible, presiding and polling
officials will be finalised, and the timeline for dispatching ballot papers to
centres has been set.
In keeping with
tradition, the commission met head of the government Chief Adviser Prof
Muhammad Yunus at Jamuna yesterday and has sought an appointment with President
Mohammed Shahabuddin before publishing the schedule. The Bangabhaban later
confirmed the appointment for Wednesday noon.
During the meeting
with Yunus, Chief Election Commissioner AMM Nasir Uddin said, "All
preparations for holding the elections are progressing properly and smoothly.
The commission is fully ready to organise both the national election and the
referendum in the first half of February."
The Chief Adviser's
Press Wing added that the commissioners expressed gratitude for the
government's cooperation, and noted that election activities were already
visible across the country.
Expressing
satisfaction, Yunus said, "In the interest of free and fair elections, the
government will continue to provide all necessary support to the Election
Commission. In this long-awaited election, you [the EC] are in the driver's
seat. We must reach the desired goal. We are moving forward to present the
nation with the finest election in its history."
SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
Election Commissioner
Brig Gen (retd) Abul Fazal Md Sanaullah told reporters after the meeting at the
EC, "We will announce the schedule [for national polls and referendum]
this week."
Asked whether BNP
Chairperson Khaleda Zia's illness could delay the announcement, he said,
"Political parties have expressed both support and opposition to such
views. These are political statements. The EC is proceeding according to its
own judgment, in line with its earlier commitment and the government's
plan."
EC officials noted
that election day is typically before or after a weekend, either Sunday or
Thursday.
February 13 and 14 are
weekends, and the last three national elections were all held on Sundays.
EXTENDED VOTING HOURS
With two ballots to be
cast, time management has become a key concern. Voting will now run from 7:30am
to 4:30pm, extending polling by an hour, with half an hour added to morning and
afternoon sessions. Election day will be a public holiday.
Where space allows,
additional booths will be set up.
A mock vote on
November 29 showed that casting two ballots took a voter 3 minutes 52 seconds
on average, about two minutes for those who did not read the ballot, and 7–8
minutes for those who did.
The EC has finalised
plans for 42,761 polling centres and 2,44,739 booths. Each centre will serve
about 3,000 voters, with one booth for every 600 male or 500 female voters.
With eight hours of polling, each voter will have 48–58 seconds inside the
booth.
BALLOT PAPERS
The EC decided that
all election materials, including ballot papers, will reach polling stations
the day before voting.
Asked whether this
could revive allegations of overnight ballot-stuffing, Sanaullah said,
"The EC is confident that such events will not occur this time. The
commission aims to restore public confidence and will remain vigilant to ensure
the process is free from disruption."
During the January 7,
2024 polls, ballots were delivered to 93 percent of centres on election
morning, except remote areas. Traditionally, ballots were dispatched the
previous day, a practice questioned after 2018 when opposition parties alleged
ballot box stuffing before dawn.
Ballot printing for
expatriate voters begins today, with dispatch starting tomorrow. These overseas
ballots will not feature candidate names, only party and independent symbols,
allowing voters to select their choice once nominations are finalised.
For the referendum
campaign, the EC will support the government's programmes. To make the
referendum question easily visible, a large-size sample ballot will be
displayed before the voter queue at every polling centre, Sanaullah added.
PRESIDING, RETURNING
OFFICERS
The EC has prepared
lists of presiding, assistant presiding, and polling officers, drawing from
government, semi-government, autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies, and
state-owned banks.
"Private bank
officials will remain on reserve and engaged only if necessary," Sanaullah
said.
On returning officers,
he said the meeting did not finalise appointments. Traditionally, deputy
commissioners serve as ROs in the 64 districts and divisional commissioners in
Dhaka and Chattogram. BNP has proposed appointing EC officials instead, and
some EC staff have echoed the call.
"Usually, deputy
commissioners serve as returning officers. Other proposals are under
consideration. The EC is reviewing these, and a decision will be announced in
due course," Sanaullah said.
Asked about demands to
bar the Jatiya Party and 14-party alliance partners from contesting, he
replied, "The commission's stance is that those permitted by law will be
able to take part in the polls. The law specifies who can and cannot
contest."
On whether an adviser
in the interim government may run, he said, "You will see in due time. It
is probably not possible."
The commission has
already published the final voter list, completed delimitation of the 300
constituencies, approved registration for two new political parties with two
more pending, and launched a mobile app for expatriate voter registration.
Meanwhile, the
government has amended the Representation of the People Order, updated the
electoral code of conduct, and nearly completed major reshuffles in field
administration and the police.
















