Dialogue among political parties needed to resolve crisis: CEC
Staff Reporter :
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal has said, we are telling and they also believe that solution to the ongoing political crisis is not possible without dialogues among the parties.
What is happening in Bangladesh is not an issue to be resolved on the streets without dialogue among political parties, he added.
The CEC made the comments while US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas met him at his office at Agargaon Nirbachan Bhaban on Tuesday.
During the meeting, he was said to have emphasised that creating a conducive environment for elections is crucial, and resolving the existing political crisis would significantly aid in the smooth conduct of the electoral process.
“If these issues are resolved politically then it will be very comfortable for us to hold elections. It will be much easier,” he added.
The chief election commissioner reiterated his hopes for the political parties to come together and engage in discussions to find common ground.
He said, “We believe the parties should sit together, have tea. Then the crisis should be resolved through discussions.”
During the meeting, Peter Haas noted that he has come to know from news reports that those who are being registered as a political party are not that “vibrant”.
In response to the US envoy’s question about why certain parties perceived as vibrant were not registered, CEC Awal told him that the Election Commission strictly adheres to the criteria outlined in their rules for party registration.
“In order to register a party, we have strictly followed the rules and the criteria required to be met. As a result, many parties were unable to secure registration.
However, two parties were successfully registered as they fulfilled the necessary requirements at the district and upazila (sub-district) levels,” he said.
The meeting also covered queries regarding the status of journalists’ motorcycles during the upcoming election.
Ambassador Haas sought clarification on this matter, to which the CEC responded that it was currently under consideration.
“We have said that this matter is under consideration. We have already informed the local returning officers that they will issue permission to motorcycles considering the situation there. We will also review the matter centrally and take a decision,” Habibul Awal added.
Meanwhile, the US Ambassador expressed concern over the amendment to the Representation of the People Order (RPO), which appeared to have reduced the power of the Election Commission.
In response, the CEC clarified that the amendment, in fact, increased their authority rather than diminishing it.
Earlier, the US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas arrived at the election commission building in Agargaon around 11.10am.
After a meeting that lasted approximately for an hour and a half, both Ambassador Haas and CEC Awal addressed the journalists present.
While the call for political parties to engage in dialogue comes as a significant step towards finding a peaceful and democratic resolution to the ongoing political crisis in Bangladesh, Ambassador Haas said the US will be sending a pre-election monitoring team in early October this year.
“We discussed the changes in RPO, the registration of political parties, and the importance of credible elections by sending observers,” said the US envoy.
The meeting included Election Commissioner retired Brigadier General Ahsan Habib and Commission Secretary Jahangir Alam, besides Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal and the US ambassador.
