Rohingya population poses big challenge to voter list update

Like other districts across the country, a voter list update campaign is underway in Cox's Bazar as well. However, the difference in the pace and challenges of the activities in cities and villages is clear depending on the area.

The biggest challenge in this regard is the Rohingya population because residents complain that their names are also appearing in the updated voter list. However, although many have mixed reactions to this, they believe that the problems can be solved if proper precautions are taken.

Afia Banu, a resident of Cox's Bazar Municipality, said that the teachers in charge of updating information are going door to door to complete the work by collecting everyone's information and she thinks that is a great thing.

However, different pictures of these activities are seen in the upazilas and villages.

Fariha Yasmin, a reserved member of Wards 7, 8 and 9 of Sabrang Union Parishad in Teknaf, said that although the officials concerned are supposed to go door to door to collect information, the system is not being followed in many cases. People are asked to go to schools to provide necessary information.

Teknaf Municipality resident Abdul Karim (35) said that the work of updating the voter list is going on rapidly in the city, but it is comparatively slow in the villages. Due to the lack of awareness among the villagers, they are facing more problems in the voter list updating process than the city people.

Halima Khatun (45), a resident of Pekuar Magnama Union, said that even though her children are eligible voters, they have to go to the field worker concerned to provide their information. In this case, various documents including the signatures of the people's representatives of the union parishad are required.

Ismail Hossain (55), a resident of Eidgah Upazila, said that although the workers go door to door, they are often not available. Those who could not provide information have been asked to contact the center later.

Jahidul Islam (27), a resident of Ramu Upazila, complained that some field-level staff are not arriving on time, resulting in long waits.

Nurul Amin (48) said that there is a problem with transportation in remote areas. In addition, many elderly people are having difficulty filling out the forms, but there is not enough support for them.

Abdul Majid (32), a shopkeeper in Shaplapur Bazar, Maheshkhali, positively described the initiative and said that it is very necessary for the inclusion of new voters. However, he said that the procedure needs to be completed more quickly.

Maymuna Begum (50) said: "Everyone will be included in the correct information, but the data collection workers should listen to us properly and help us."

Cox's Bazar District Election Officer Tofail Hossain said that since Cox's Bazar is a special border district, the field staff have to go through some challenges here and the biggest risk here is the Rohingya population.

"Special attention has to be paid to ensuring that no Rohingya people are included in the voter list when updating it. For which, in many cases, the people of this special area have to provide some special information and evidence."

He said that the work of verifying and sorting these data is being completed through school teachers, college teachers and union-level public representatives.

Since the data collection work has to be completed by February 3, 2025, and there are instructions to ensure that no Rohingya or other nationals and minors are registered as the voter he added.

The difference between the voter list update activities in cities and villages in various upazilas of Cox's Bazar is clear. Irregularities in data collection, absence of staff and problems with transportation to remote areas are creating challenges for rural voters. However, locals believe that these problems can be solved through proper supervision and management.