Officials will no longer campaign for ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in referendum: Public administration secretary

Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration Ehsanul Haque has said government officials and employees will no longer campaign in favour of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ votes in the referendum due to restrictions imposed by the Election Commission.

He made the remarks while speaking to administrative officials of Rajshahi division at an exchange meeting on referendum campaigning and voter motivation at the Rajshahi Divisional Commissioner’s Office at 11:00am on Friday.

Ehsanul Haque said government officials and employees had previously campaigned in favour of a ‘yes’ vote in the referendum as there were no specific restrictions from the Election Commission. However, he said, the Election Commission has now issued clear directives, and government officials and employees will not take part in campaigning for any side.

He also said the administration will encourage voters to participate in the referendum but will not campaign by taking a position in favour of any specific vote, whether ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

Administrative officials from different levels of Rajshahi division attended the meeting. Discussions were also held on measures to ensure the referendum is conducted in a fair and peaceful manner.