Voting arrangements underway for 1 million govt employees: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) A.M.M. Nasir Uddin has announced that the Election Commission (EC) is making special arrangements to enable around one million government employees to cast their votes in the upcoming national election.

The CEC made the disclosure on Monday (October 6) during a dialogue with representatives of electronic media at the Election Commission headquarters in Agargaon, Dhaka. Other election commissioners and senior EC officials were also present at the event.

In his opening remarks, the CEC said the commission had identified 2.1 million deceased voters during the latest voter list update. “Many of them used to vote in previous elections,” he noted.

Nasir Uddin reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to ensuring a free, fair, and transparent election, saying that cooperation from the media was essential to creating a level playing field.

“The electronic media must play a vital role in preventing the misuse of artificial intelligence (AI),” he said. “We will also make arrangements for expatriates and government officials on election duty to cast their votes. Nearly one million government employees will be brought under the voting process this time. We want to conduct the election transparently — as clear as a mirror.”

According to EC sources, the commission will hold two separate sessions on Monday — one with television journalists at 10:30 a.m. and another with print and online media representatives at 2:30 p.m. Around 50 journalists are expected to take part in the discussions.

The CEC further said the Election Commission will sit with women leaders and election experts on Tuesday (October 7), followed by meetings with freedom fighters and political parties. He assured that the commission would implement the recommendations that emerge from these dialogues.

The Election Commission began its series of pre-election dialogues on September 28, starting with sessions involving civil society members, intellectuals, and academics. However, more than half of the invited participants did not attend the opening day’s event.