Staff Reporter:
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday said the people have no interest in the city polls being held under this Election Commission (EC) which is regulated by the government.
Speaking at a discussion program, he also feared that the upcoming elections to the five city corporations will be stage-managed even though BNP is not fielding any candidate.
“The government has completely destroyed the election system by using the state machinery. The Elec-tion Commission is under the control of the government. People are not interested in the election taking place in the country,” the BNP leader said.
He said opposition parties are not fielding candidates in most of the city corporation elections due to the “collapsed’ election system.
”Arif (Ariful Haque Chowdhury) is a very popular two-time mayor in Sylhet and the people of Sylhet want him to see as mayor again. In a public meeting, Arif yesterday (Saturday) said this election will never be accepted as the government has made a blueprint. So, there is no point in going to this election as it will be meaningless,” Fakhrul said.
He said the people of Sylhet City shed tears as their beloved leader decided against participating in the election. “He (Arif) clearly said this election will be meaningless and no election will be fair under this government.”
A faction of the Jatiya Gonotantrik Party (Jagpa) arranged the program at the Jatiya Press Club, mark-ing the party founder Shafiul Alam Pradhan’s sixth death anniversary.
Fakhrul said all the authoritarian and fascistic regimes destroy the election system and use the stage-managed voting a tool to hang onto power.
“So, We would like to say it very clearly that there will be no free and fair elections if the current gov-ernment remains in power…the election must be held under an impartial caretaker government,” he said.
