No postal ballot for local government elections, polls likely by year-end

Highlights

• Officials cite complexity and high cost of postal voting system.
• Draft rules retain non-partisan system without party symbols.
• Expatriates express disappointment, calling exclusion from local polls discriminatory.
• SHUJAN calls for law amendment to allow postal ballots in local elections.
• Government plans phased local elections starting end of year.

The Election Commission has decided not to introduce postal ballot facilities in elections to city corporations, municipalities, upazila parishads and union parishads this time.

The decision has been finalised in the draft rules and code of conduct for local government elections, which also retain provisions for holding polls on a non-partisan basis, without party symbols.

Explaining the decision, the EC said sending ballots to expatriate voters, collecting and verifying them, and including them in the counting process within the stipulated timeframe would be highly complex and costly.

The commission has prepared draft codes of conduct for various local government elections and published them on its website on 10 June, seeking public feedback by 30 June.

Under the Representation of the People Order, 1972, postal voting is allowed in national parliamentary elections, enabling expatriate Bangladeshis to cast their votes from abroad. The existing laws governing local government elections do not have this provision. 

Election Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel Masud told TBS that no new arrangement for expatriate voting has been introduced and that postal ballots will not be available in local government elections.

Expatriates have expressed disappointment over the decision, saying it is discriminatory as they can vote in national elections but are excluded from local polls.

Tarek Aziz, a PhD researcher at Texas State University in the United States, said, "It is very disappointing that I cannot vote in local elections. Local representatives are well known to us and directly involved in local development such as roads, water supply and other services. Not being able to vote for them is painful."

Another expatriate, Ahmedul Kabir from Malaysia, said that although expatriates live abroad, their families, homes, land and social ties remain in their local areas. Decisions made by union parishads, municipalities and city corporations directly affect their families. "We want voting rights to be ensured for us," he said.

SHUJAN Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar told TBS that excluding postal voting for expatriates in local government elections would not be appropriate.

"They are citizens and voters of Bangladesh. Ensuring their voting rights is the responsibility of the state," he said.

He added that the problems faced during postal voting in national elections should be reviewed and solutions found, but expatriates should not be deprived of their voting rights due to those challenges.

He said even if the absence of explicit legal provisions is not clearly stated in law, the issue is a matter of principle and expatriates should be allowed to vote in all elections.

"If necessary, the EC can introduce this through rules or notifications. The government can also amend the law. Ultimately, it is a policy decision," he added.

Infographic: TBS

Postal voting in parliamentary elections

In the recently held 13th national parliamentary election and referendum, 15,28,131 voters registered for postal voting, including 7,67,233 expatriates. Of them, 12,24,188 votes were cast, including 5,44,372 from abroad.

The EC said only ballots received by returning officers within the deadline were counted. After verification, 10,73,497 votes were deemed valid.

Local government polls likely by year-end

According to sources in the Local Government Division and the EC, elections to five tiers of local government are planned in the next fiscal year.

These include 4,581 union parishads, 61 zila parishads, 495 upazila parishads, 330 municipalities and various posts in 13 city corporations that are ready for election.

Commissioner Abdur Rahmanel said the EC plans to complete all preparations by October, with elections likely to be held by the end of the year.

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir told parliament yesterday that local government elections may begin in phases across the country from September or October, with plans to complete them within the next year.