Just days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina outlined the modality of holding the 10th parliamentary election in Bangladesh, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad said the Election Commission (EC) has already completed all necessary preparations.
The steps taken included preparing an electoral code of conduct, the procedure for conducting polls and purchasing equipment.
The chief election commissioner said: “The EC can hold the national polls any day within the last 90 days of the parliament’s tenure.
“We will complete giving training to 600,000 election officials before elections,” he added.
The CEC made the announcement while speaking to journalists after holding an emergency meeting with EC officials at the Election Commission secretariat in Dhaka on Tuesday.
Kazi Rakibuddin said: “The next general election will be held under the constitutional framework and the EC will announce the schedule before 35 to 45 days of the polls so that the candidates can take necessary preparation.”
Replying to a query on whether the commission will hold dialogue with the leaders of political parties on the issue, the CEC said: “We will hold talks with the representatives of all political parties, if necessary.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has asked the people to pledge their votes for her Awami League party to complete unfinished development works and rid Bangladesh of poverty by 2021.
Source: Gulf times
