Former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Abu Hena during the launch of a book on the information of candidates participating in the tenth and eleventh parliamentary election Wednesday said if the election isn’t participatory and competitive, then it’s a meaningless election.
The Election Commission (EC) has to gain everyone’s trust in order to organise a participatory election. They have to display through their work that they are neutral.
Such comments from the former CEC is nothing new. Many have said this before. But the problem with political leaders is that, they don’t approve of anything that goes against them. They welcome anything elatedly if it goes in their favour.
Election stands for participatory and competitive voting. “It is the constitutional duty of the election commission to hold a fair election,” Abu Hena said, adding whoever is in the election commission, must be conscious of their authority and responsibilities.
They are accountable to the people. If the election commission is aware of its authority and responsibility a lot of issues can be averted.
Former CEC Mohammad Abu Hena and two of his associate commissioners had been appointed under a certain political situation that had arisen back then. Even though that is not possible in the current reality, there’s no alternative to a fair and participatory election for democracy.
Earlier there was no law for forming the election commission. The current election commission has been formed under the leadership of Kazi Habibul Awal, only after the law had been passed in the eleventh national parliament.
In our disputing political culture, there will always be and opposition in the appointing of any constitutional institution including the election commission. Attempts have to be made to resolve the issue, recognising this reality.
The commission led by ATM Shamsul Huda faced considerable opposition too in 2008 like the opposition coming from some of the political parties including BNP towards the current election commission.
They overcame that crisis through discussion and presented the people with a fair election with the participation of all.
Not just the former CEC even the present CEC Kazi Habibul Awal remarked at a recent discussion in Barishal, the election won’t be participatory without BNP. Yet, why he came to the final conclusion of not inviting BNP to a dialogue, is incomprehensible to us.
If the commission aims for a fair election, it’s impossible without participation from all parties. The bold action, the commission has taken in the Gaibandha by-election has increased people’s confidence in them.
The commission has to prove it with their work, that they want a fair and participatory election.
The duty of the election commission is to ensure a fair and participatory election in the true sense. Anything apart from that is a meaningless election in the words of the former CEC.
Another demand made by BNP was that elections cannot be held using EVM. CEC has said if the government doesn’t provide money to purchase EVMs, there will be elections on EVM in 70 constituencies. There will be election using ballots in the rest of them; that means CEC's statement has come closer to BNP's demand.
Notably, the 27-point programme BNP has announced for the repair of the state does not mention anything about the cancellation or reorganisation of the current Election Commission. Rather it talks of amending the Election Commission Act.
Officials of the EC can take this positively as well. We believe it won’t be right for the election commission to block the way of discussion completely. Whether BNP or its allies come or not, the door of discussion must be kept open for the sake of a fair and participatory election.