EC drafts poll reform plan
Staff Correspondent
The Election Commission (EC) has drafted a set of electoral reform proposals including those for barring civil or military bureaucrats from contesting the parliamentary election within three years since retirement and stringent provisions against the loan defaulters. The EC will soon take part in an inter-ministerial meeting and sit with the political parties seeking their opinion about the proposals, the acting secretary to the EC Secretariat said yesterday. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda and two election commissioners--Sohul Hossain and Brigadier General (retired) M Sakhawat Hossain--yesterday apprised Chief Adviser (CA) Fakhruddin Ahmed of the proposals. The meeting held at the CA office however did not discuss any possible timeframe for holding the next parliamentary election that was originally scheduled for January 22, sources said. The CA assured the commission of all sorts of cooperation in realising the reform proposals so that a free, fair and credible parliamentary election takes place. The draft proposals have been prepared in light of the representation of the people's order (RPO) 1972 and recommendations of civil society bodies. They include barring one from standing for more than three seats. According to the existing laws, a person can contest from a maximum of five constituencies. The EC has also proposed disqualifying the loan defaulters of financial institutions from the polls like the existing provision does with the bank loan defaulters, sources said. The current provision that deals with the bank loan defaulters will be amended to set a time frame for rescheduling the loan before the election, sources said. Humayun Kabir, acting EC secretary, at a press briefing at the EC Secretariat said the commission would soon sit with all stakeholders including the political parties to discuss the reform proposals. He however did not specify whether discussions with the political parties would begin this month. Asked how much time the reforms will take to be carried out, the secretary said it would be done within the shortest possible time. Replying to a query, he said the EC is now busy with the reform proposals and is not thinking about any time limit for holding the election. "Without completing the reforms, it is not possible to specify the time frame for the next parliamentary election," he said. He said the EC has yet to decide whether there should be a voter list with photographs or identity cards.
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