Staff Reporter:
The Cabinet Division has instructed all ministries to take immediate steps to enforce an Election Commission (EC) directive barring government officials and employees from campaigning for either the “Yes” or “No” vote in the upcoming referendum.
The referendum will be held alongside the national parliamentary election on 12 February. Ahead of the vote, the EC has made it clear that participation by public servants in campaigning for either side of the referendum is a punishable offence.
The Election Commission Secretariat issued a special directive on Thursday (29 Jan), ordering government officials and employees to refrain from any form of campaigning in favor of the “Yes” or “No” vote.
Speaking to the media on Friday, Cabinet Secretary Sheikh Abdur Rashid said the EC’s instructions would be fully implemented.
“The Election Commission’s directive will be enforced. All levels of government officials and employees will be officially informed about the prohibition on referendum campaigning,” he said.
He added that while many officials had already become aware of the directive through media reports, formal instructions would now be issued to ensure full compliance.
Meanwhile, Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration Ehsanul Haque said at an event at the Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner’s Office that government officials and employees had earlier participated in campaigning for the “Yes” vote due to the absence of explicit EC rules at the time.
However, he added that following the EC’s restrictions, no government official or employee would take part in campaigning for either side of the referendum.
