Interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Wednesday instructed law enforcing agencies to take full preparations by December for the 13th national elections to be held in mid-February or April next year.聽
In a press conference at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, the chief adviser鈥檚 press secretary Shafiqul Alam, while briefing about the CA鈥檚 meeting with top security officials, said, 鈥業n today鈥檚 meeting, a decision was made regarding a reshuffle of the deputy commissioners and superintendents of police by lottery-based random choice.鈥�
He added that the chief adviser also directed the home ministry to complete necessary recruitments, including 17,000 new members for the Bangladesh Police, Border Gaurd Bangladesh and Bangladesh Coast Guards prior to the upcoming elections.
鈥楾he chief adviser has ordered a strict enforcement of laws until the national elections and afterwards,鈥� Shafiqul said.
Responding to a question, he said the chief adviser earlier announced that the national polls could be held in mid-February or April next year subject to progress in the state reforms.聽聽
Deputy press secretary Mohammad Abul Kalam Azad Majumder, in the briefing, said that the chief adviser instructed officials concerned to verify whether it would be possible to appoint electoral officials other than 鈥榗ontroversial鈥� polling and presiding officers of the previous three national elections.
Home adviser, retired Lieutenant General Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, chief adviser鈥檚 special assistant on home affairs Md Khoda Bakhsh Chowdhury, national security adviser Khalilur Rahman, inspector general of police Baharul Alam, Bangladesh Boarder Gaurd director general Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui and Bangladesh Ansar and VDP director general Major General Abdul Motaleb Sazzad Mahmud were present in the meeting that began at 5:00pm at the chief adviser鈥檚 official residence Jamuna and continued for two hours.
Citing that around eight lakh security personnel, including from the ansar and police forces, would be deployed to maintain the law and order during the national elections, Azad added that the chief adviser directed all the officials concerned to ensure 鈥榠ntensive鈥� training for the security personnel.
The chief adviser also gave instructions to arrange training for the judicial magistrates and to produce awareness campaign materials targeting the voters, he said.
Shafiqul added that the chief adviser told the top security officials to verify a possible list of young voters aged between 18 and 33 and arrange special voting booths for them in the upcoming elections.
The meeting was told that, 16,000, out of the 47,000 potential polling booths, were identified as risky and the chief adviser ordered special security arrangement to be put in place in those booths to avert vote-related crimes.
He also stressed quick purchases of close-circuit cameras for each polling booth and body cameras for the security personnel on election duty, Shafiqul said, while Azad added that a decision was taken to deploy election monitoring cells at every division, district, and upazila.
He said that the government would request the Election Commission to draft terms of references for the poll observers and journalists.