Dhaka, Feb 06 – The Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) election is likely to be held in the last week of March, Election Commission sources said. A competent source to the Election Commission on Wednesday told this correspondent that the upcoming CCC polls might be held on March 28 or March 29 as the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examinations would begin from the first week on April.
Besides, the Election Commission will announce the schedule for CCC elections on February 16, Senior Secretary of the EC Secretariat Md Alamgir said this at a press conference at Nirbachan Bhaban yesterday, after a meeting of the commission.
He said like the Dhaka city corporation elections, the CCC polls will be held with the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).
Noting that the EC will hold a meeting on holding the CCC polls and Bagura-1 and Jashore-6 by-elections on February 16, the secretary said the commission will announce the schedules of these elections on that day.
The last CCC election was held on April 28 in 2015. The current CCC’s five-year tenure will expire on August 5, 2020.
According to the Local Government (City Corporation) Act 2009, the election to any city corporation should be held within the last 180 days of its five-year tenure that starts with the first meeting of the corporation.
The seats of Bagura-1 and Jashore-6 fell vacant on January 18 and January 21 respectively after the elected MPs of the constituencies died.
According to the constitution, the by-election has to be held within 90 days after a seat gets vacant.
Meanwhile, the ruling Awami League is also taking preparation for the CCC polls and searching popular and competent mayoral candidate for contesting the polls in a bid to make party symbol Nouka (Boat) victorious.
Party insiders said the party is likely to nominate new face as its mayoral candidate for contesting the polls. they said the party would take the final decision in this regard in its local government nomination board meeting would be held at the Awami League president and prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s official residence Gono Bhaban after February 16.
Besides, Awami League mayoral candidates were elected in the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) elections on Saturday.
Ruling party contestant Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh won the DSCC election with 424,595 votes. He defeated BNP’s Ishraque Hossain, who polled 236,512, by 188,083 votes. Voter turnout in the DSCC election was 29 percent.
In the DNCC election, AL Mayoral candidate Atiqul Islam got 447,211 votes to defeat Tabith Awal of BNP, who polled 264,161 by 183,050 votes. The voter turnout was 25 percent in DNCC polls. – Staff Reporter
