Himu’s Window

The two-day BBC dialogue on Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) election at Rajshahi Medical College auditorium has created enthusiasm among the electorates.

All the 15 mayoral candidates answered to the questions from around 500 electorates in two shifts on Monday and Tuesday nights providing scopes for voters to choose the right person in election.

BBC Bangla organised the dialogue in association with the Election Commission. Both the sessions of the dialogue were aired live on Bangladesh Television (BTV), BTV World and Bangladesh Betar.

Kamal Ahmed, senior producer of BBC Bangla Service, moderated the dialogues while Waliur Rahman Miraz, producer of BBC Sanglap series, produced the event.

While answering to a query on water crisis, acting Rajshahi mayor Rejaunnabi Dudu, also a mayor aspirant, said subscribers are not available even after creating water pipelines in many areas.

Asked why water lines were taken to areas where there is no demand and when 40 percent people are reeling from water crisis, Dudu felt embarrassed and said the lines were created to provide services in disadvantaged areas.

Mayor hopeful Forman Ali expressed optimism that he wants to be an RCC mayor in order to work for people’s welfare. Ali, however, vowed to remain incorruptible.

Siddikur Rahman unfolded his plan of collecting water from the Padma to meet the city’s water crisis. If the Padma carries sand, he said he would preserve rainwater.

Ruhul Kuddus Tunu said he would arrange two water lines — one for consumption and another for using household activities.

Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul, Masudul Haque Dulu, Rayhanur Rahman, AHM Khairuzzaman Liton, Abdul Matin Khan, Durul Huda, Akhtaruzzaman Babul, Nasir Ahmed Biddyut, Abdul Khaleque and Enamul Haque also answered to different questions of the voters at the dialogue sessions.

The mayor aspirants promised to ensure accountability and people’s participation in all development activities if they are elected.

A BBC survey revealed that inefficiency is responsible for the present poor civic services and the mayor aspirants pledged for running the local government body in an efficient manner.

BBC Bangla is producing the Sanglap in four city corporations consecutively. After Sylhet and Rajshahi dialogues, the BBC Sanglap will be held at Khulna and Barisal ahead of the city corporation polls to be held on August 4.

 

Canvassing for mayor and councilor candidates has become a source of income for hundreds of unemployed and poor youths, especially women, in Rajshahi city as they are being offered attractive figures for electioneering for the candidates.

The opportunity has come as a relief among the poor against the backdrop of skyrocketing prices of essentials, although purchasing votes or influencing election through spending money is a violation of the election code of conduct.

A good number of employees of Rajshahi City Corporation and some other government offices have also engaged themselves in the election campaign seeing a new source of income, even at times hampering their duties.

The demand for women workers is high as women have easier access than men to households.

Full-time workers are being paid Tk 100 to Tk 160 per day while part-time workers are getting Tk 30 to Tk 80, according to the workers.

Children are also being hired despite the fact that engaging children under 16 years of age is prohibited in the electoral law.

In some cases, a worker is electioneering for more than one candidate following crisis of workers, since this time as many as 281 persons, including 15 for the post of the mayor, are contesting in the election. There were not more than seven mayor candidates in previous RCC polls.

The candidates are hiring the workers for distributing leaflets, accompanying them while they go door-to-door to seek votes and for taking part in election processions.

“Allah blessed us as the election season came at last. We are now able to have three meals a day,” said a female worker seeking anonymity.

She added that many poor people like her used to get donations from politicians during the regime of the political governments. “We are getting no money from the politicians since the state of emergency was declared.”

Khatun’s cousin said maximum candidates are offering a satisfactory figure, but some are paying them as low as Tk 30 to Tk 50 per day.

Rubel, a youth of Laxmipur area, said he has so far worked for three candidates.

“I got Tk 50 participating in a procession of Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul of BNP, Tk 60 distributing leaflets for AHM Khairuzzaman Liton and Tk 100 for campaigning for Raihanur Rahman of Progressive Development Party (PDP).

An employee of Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) said many of them (RCC employees) are working full-time for Tk 150 per day. He informed maximum of RCC workers are working for acting mayor Rezaunnabi Dudu and Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul.

Another RCC official said the official activities are being hampered following absence of workers.

“Ahead of the elections, Dudu (Acting mayor) earned sympathy from employees by canceling a RCC plan for expelling some 300 employees from July that was essential for curtailing annual expenditure,” said the official seeking anonymity.

Many workers are eager to work for him because of that move, he added.

The outgoing ward councilors, who are also contesting the poll, are also using RCC employees rampantly in campaigning for them, alleged several councilor aspirants.

They said some candidates are distributing donations among poor people and promising them jobs and other facilities provided they win the election.

 

Mayoral and councillorship hopefuls in Rajshahi City Corporation elections yesterday at a meeting with local administration raised allegations of gross code of conduct violations.

Campaigning under the banners of political parties, spending of black money and intimidation by hired thugs are widespread, claimed a number of contestants.

The meeting, held at Rajshahi District Council auditorium, was organised by returning officer and regional deputy election commissioner of Rajshahi.

Honest, educated and competent candidates are at a disadvantage due to the authorities’ indifference toward the violations of the code of conduct, said the speakers.

Bribing prospective voters and intimidation and attacks targeted at opponents by some of the candidates will foil the government’s effort for holding an election free from violence, corruptionists and black money holders, they cautioned.

Out of 15 candidates running for the mayoral post of the city, 12 were present at the meeting. The three candidates who did not show up are AHM Khairuzzaman Liton of Awami League (AL) Rajshahi city unit, Mosaddek Hossain Bulbul of BNP and Akhtaruzzaman Bablu, president of Bikalpadhara Bangladesh Rajshahi city unit.

Around 600 councillor candidates attended the meeting.

Dissident candidates from political parties also spoke against their parties for various violations of the code of conduct.

A number of the speakers said instead of waiting on receiving formal complaints about any sort of rules violations, the government should ask its intelligence agencies to increase vigilance over different campaigns.

Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner Hafijur Rahman Bhuiyan, Rajshahi Deputy Election Commissioner Sayed Muhammad Musa and the commissioner of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police were present at the meeting among others.

Mayoral candidate and Rajshahi city AL President Masudul Haque Dulu said the AL-led 14-party alliance quite openly endorsed Fazle Hossain Badsha, but the AL is now backing AHM Khairuzzaman Liton.

“Isn’t this political campaigning? Doesn’t this violate electoral rules? If yes, the authorities are being two-faced as they had been trumpeting the rules on one hand, while on the other, they aren’t taking any action against the violators,” Dulu said.

Another mayor aspirant Durul Huda, president of Jatiya Party city unit, said, “Major parties are openly endorsing their candidates. Let us know if it’s legal, then we’ll also arrange political support… Why would we lag behind?”

Progressive Development Party’s Raihanur Rahman said almost all candidates are secretly hiring workers by huge numbers to do their campaign work.

Acting mayor Rejaunnabi Dudu alleged that many candidates are spending black money to engage hired thugs and run smear campaign against their opponents.

Abu Bakar Siddik, a councillor hopeful at ward 10, said many public servants are also taking part in campaign work in exchange for money. “Hired goons of the present councillors who are also contesting the polls are threatening to kill us,” he added.

Abul Kalam Azad, contesting councillorship post at ward 14, said many candidates are campaigning at places of worship including mosques.

Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner Hafijur Rahman Bhuiyan said to assist the authorities take swift action, everyone, if necessary withholding their identity, should provide the authorities with specific information on rules violations.

Deputy Election Commissioner Sayed Muhammad Musa said starting Monday (yesterday), the authorities would take tough action against violators of the code of conduct.

Rejecting Musa’s comment, a few candidates said they also want action against all the violations that have been committed so far.

“We so far warned candidates for violation of rules. But from now on, we will inform the Election Commission in Dhaka [of any allegation] so it can initiate an investigation and cancel candidacy of the offender,” Musa said.

Musa also assured the candidates of justice and told them that the commission has instructed them to take action against those who are using resources of political parties in their election campaigns.

 

 

Australian Deputy High Commissioner Kilmeny Beckering Vinckers paid a two-day visit to Rajshahi to monitor the situation here before the Rajshahi City Corporation election.

During her visit, she met Acting Rajshahi Mayor Rejaunnabi Dudu, also a mayoral candidate, at his office yesterday morning. She had talks with other mayoral candidates including City Awami League President Masudul Haque Dulu and General Secretary AHM Khairuzzaman Liton over cell phone.

Earlier, she met Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner Hafijur Rahman Bhuiyan, Rajshahi Deputy Commissioner M Ibrahim Khalil and Deputy Election Commissioner Sayed Muhammad Musa on Sunday.