BNP settles on Mirza Fakhrul, but will hold off on formal announcement: Sources

The identity of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) candidate for the presidency will be revealed at the last moment. The wait will continue until Thursday.

However, multiple senior BNP sources have said that the party has finalised the name of its Secretary General and Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir as its candidate in the presidential election.

A senior BNP leader told Prothom Alo on Wednesday that the party would not make any advance announcement because its Standing Committee had entrusted the party chairman with the responsibility of nominating the candidate for the presidency.

The candidate’s identity will become known when the nomination papers are submitted on Thursday, 13 August.

According to the schedule announced by the election commission (EC), nomination papers can be submitted from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm on 13 August. The presidential election will be held on Thursday, 20 August.

Meanwhile, the 11-party alliance led by Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, the main opposition party in the Jatiya Sangsad (national parliament), has already announced former BNP leader and current Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Chairman Colonel (retd) Oli Ahmed as its presidential candidate.

Multiple senior BNP sources also told Prothom Alo two days ago that BNP Chairman and Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had finalised the nomination of Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.

The sources also said that Mirza Fakhrul signed the required consent statement on Saturday.

Candidates for the presidency must either sign a declaration of consent on their nomination papers or submit a written statement confirming their consent to contest the election.

The BNP has already collected two nomination papers from the EC. The party’s collection of two nomination papers has generated curiosity in political circles.

However, EC sources said that multiple nomination papers can be submitted in the name of the same person for the presidency. In such a case, the candidate will be considered valid if any one of the nomination papers is found valid.

The same happened during the election of outgoing President Mohammed Shahabuddin, when two nomination papers were submitted in his name.

Mohammed Shahabuddin resigned from office on 24 July, leaving the presidency vacant. Since then, Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad has been serving as acting president.

Parliament has been summoned for 20 August to hold the presidential election. Senior Secretary of the EC Secretariat Akhtar Ahmed signed and issued a notification to this effect on Wednesday.

The presidential election takes place in the chamber of the Jatiya Sangsad. Members of parliament are the electors in the election, and they elect the president through an open ballot.

The Presidential Election Act states that if a presidential election becomes necessary at a time when Parliament is not in session, the election commission will determine the polling date after consulting the Speaker.

Parliament will convene on the day of polling, and the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) will summon the meeting and preside over it.

A meeting was held yesterday, Tuesday, to discuss preparations for the presidential election, chaired by Acting Speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad Kayser Kamal.

Chief Whip Nurul Islam, Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam, and whips GK Gouse, Rakibul Islam Bakul, Mia Nuruddin Ahammed Opu, Akhtaruzzaman Mia and ABM Ashraf Uddin Nizan attended the meeting.

Jatiya Sangsad Secretariat Secretary Md Golam Sarwar Bhuiyan and Election Commission Secretariat Senior Secretary Akhtar Ahmed were also present.

A notification issued by the Parliament Secretariat said the meeting discussed the use of the chamber of the Jatiya Sangsad for holding the presidential election, all necessary support and ensuring the attendance of MPs.

At a press conference at the Jatiya Sangsad Media Centre following Tuesday’s meeting, Chief Whip Nurul Islam said MPs would not be able to vote for a presidential candidate from outside their own party. Article 70 of the Constitution remains in force. Therefore, anyone who votes against the party’s decision will lose their parliamentary membership.

The Chief Whip further said that when the president, leader of the House, leader of the Opposition and acting speaker cast their votes on 20 August, the voting would be broadcast live on television. The live broadcast would continue from the counting of votes until the announcement of the result.

At the press conference, Opposition Chief Whip and National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener Nahid Islam said an inclusive election was necessary for democracy.

He said, “The presidential election should have been held in accordance with the July Charter. Since the referendum result also came out in favour of reforms, Article 70 could have been reformed and the presidential election held accordingly. In that case, the elected president would have enjoyed greater respect and acceptance. Nevertheless, since the election is taking place, we do not want it to be held uncontested. That is why we have announced a candidate.”