Past electoral controversies exert pressure on us: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has acknowledged that the election commission is facing significant pressure due to the controversies over the 2014 and 2018 elections.

Still, the commission wants to take the challenge of holding the next parliamentary polls in a credible manner, he said while addressing the inaugural session of a training workshop for the Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) at the Electoral Training Institute on Sunday.

CEC Kazi Habibul Awal noted that controversies and criticism are not a rare phenomenon in the electoral process here.

He said there might be different sorts of controversies and criticism over the election, as it persists in the history of elections spanning the past 50 to 70 years, even in elections dating back to the British era, though at a lower intensity.

"A particular aspect of the election we are preparing for is that the level of complaints or controversy is a bit excessive. The controversies stemming from the 2014 and 2018 elections are exerting pressure on us, the election commission. We are also working tirelessly... that of people... they might be true, untrue, false, or true. We are not focusing on the issue," he said.

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) did not partake in the 10th parliamentary election in 2014, resulting in candidates being elected unopposed in 153 constituencies.

In 2018, the BNP joined the 11th parliamentary election, but it was marred with allegations of ballot stuffing on the previous night.

At the workshop, CEC Kazi Habibul Awal instructed the UNOs to discharge their assigned duties properly during the election and clarified that the commission will monitor their activities closely.

"We will strictly monitor from the election commission and collect information through different channels to know how you performed your duties," he said, adding it would ensure the credibility of the election.

He also noted that "There is a perception in the market that there is no confidence in us, there is no confidence in the government. The election does not become credible."

He expressed a firm stance on holding a free, fair, and credible election, saying, "We want to accept the challenge, the elections will be free, fair, and transparent under us. We want to show transparency through the media and observers."