EC to exercise its authority in reshuffling admin: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad on Tuesday said the Election Commission will widely use the power of reshuffling the administration during the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The Commission will take preparation to reshuffle the administration based on specific complaints against government officials before the announcement of the election schedule, the CEC told reporters while leaving his EC Secretariat office.

“We’ll use it largely and take preparation for it… we’ll receive complaints against officials. We’re always ready to reshuffle …,” he said replying to a query whether the commission will reshuffle the administration.

The EC will publish the draft code of conduct for political parties and candidates on Wednesday after the commission meeting, the CEC added.

Turning to the schedule for the 10th general election, he said, “Now you’ll be able to know about the date of the election schedule announcement within a day or two. We’ll declare the schedule giving 40-45 days (before the deadline).”

About the RPO amendment, Rakibuddin said the EC was not consulted before the passage of the Representation of the People (amendment) Bill 2013 in Parliament dropping the provision that prevented an individual from contesting the parliamentary election as a party candidate unless he had been at least three-year membership of the party, he said.

“We were neither consulted nor informed. It’s also not supposed to inform us,” Rakibuddin said replying to a question.

Amending the law is a matter of Parliament and it did that, and the Commission has nothing to do in this regard, he added.

On Monday, Parliament passed the amendment bill on RPO incorporating a provision that when it appears necessary to transfer any employee of any department of the government or of any other organization in the interest of fair election, the Election Commission may request the concerned authorities in the matter in writing and such transfer shall have to be made effective as soon as possible on receipt of such request from the Commission.