Voters not interested

Voters not interested

Awami League candidate Atiqul Islam is leading in an election where every arrangement was made well, but the one very important component, the voter, was missing.

According to the unofficial count at of 10:30pm, Atiqul bagged 3.87 lakh votes while his Jatiya Party rival Shafin Ahmed, a prominent singer, got just 15,275 votes. At the time, results from 645 out of the 1,295 centres were available.

Voters' turnout in yesterday's Dhaka North City Corporation mayoral by-polls was so poor that election officials, polling agents, and members of the law enforcement agencies at many centres were seen sitting idle, especially for the first few hours after voting began at 8:00am.

However, ruling party men were seen frequenting the polling centre areas. Some were even seen inside the booths.

"We primarily estimate that voters' turnout in the mayoral by-polls and other election in Dhaka north and Dhaka south city corporations would be 50 percent," Election Commission Secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed told reporters at the Nirbachan Bhaban in the capital.

Earlier in the day, Chief Election Commissioner KM Nurul Huda said the EC could not be held liable for the low turnout.

“We only create election environment. We cannot bring voters [to polling centres] from their homes,” he told reporters in the morning.

According to him, voters were not interested in the election as the mayor would be in office for just one year. Also, some major political parties did not join the race.

The mayoral post fell vacant following the death of Annisul Huq in November 2017, two years after his election in April 2015.

Election to councillor posts in 36 new wards -- 18 under the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and 18 under the Dhaka South City Corporation -- was also held yesterday.

Five candidates, including Atiqul and Shafin, vied for the mayor post while 116 for councillor positions.

The election came just two months into the National Election held in December 30, in which the ruling Awami League won a landslide.

The BNP and other opposition parties boycotted the polls results, citing massive vote rigging.

ELECTION SCENARIO

Ten correspondents and three photographers of The Daily Star visited 72 polling centres and found a bizarre picture.

At booth no-1 at Mohakhali Model High School polling station, a polling officer found sleeping at 9:40am. The ballot box placed on a table in front of him was empty.

Around 20 policemen and Ansar members were gossiping, siting two benches.

One correspondent of this paper waited there for about 30 minutes, but saw no voters. In the meantime, the polling officers were having breakfast and tea inside the booths.

Presiding Officer Humayun Kabir could not say how many votes were cast there in the first two hours. However, visiting the four booths, all the ballot boxes except one, were found empty.

"Vote cast may be low due to rain," he said.

TNT Adarsha Girls High School centre is some 500 metres away.

Seeing The Daily Star correspondent, a polling officer came out of a booth and said, “What's the point of visiting the booths, brother? Better take a seat.”

"Brother, what are you going to write today? See, just one vote has been cast in the first two and a half hours. We don't know how we will spend the whole day here," said the presiding officer.

Two minutes later, around 30 youths and teenagers wearing boat symbols entered the centre, meant only for female voters. They went to first floor of the building while two youths were guarding the staircase and did not allow anyone to go up.

Presiding Officer Mizanur Rahman could not give any figure of turnout in the first two and a half hours.

Eight other centres in Mohakhali, Banani, Gulshan and Uttara had similar pictures in terms of voters' presence.

At the two polling centres at Mohammadpur Government College, some people wearing badges of boat tried to bar two reporters of this paper from entering the centre.

However, they managed to enter the station following an argument.

At the centre, only 87 out of the 4,474 votes were cast till 10:50am.

In another polling centre at the Mohammadpur Government College, no vote was found cast in the first two and a half hours.

It was a similar picture at the female polling centre at Mohammadpur Government Physical Education College. No vote was cast here till 11:30am. Around 15 minutes later, only two voters showed up.

Gopal Chandra Saha, presiding officer of the centre, said only two votes out of total 2,227 votes were cast till 11:50am.

No voters were seen at the Darul Ulum Maius Sunnah polling centre at Polashnagar in Mirpur-11 at 3:30pm. Two supporters of the AL candidate wearing badge were casting votes after taking ballots from polling officials.

Presiding Officer Nazrul Islam declined to talk about this irregularity.

While taking photograph of an empty polling booth at Kallyanpur Girls High School polling centre, a middle-aged man flanked by some youths and a police member forced The Daily Star correspondents to delete the photos.

At first, he identified himself as the presiding officer, and said, “Don't you know it is illegal to take photograph inside the polling centre?... Besides, it would not be fair if you show in your media that the polling centre is empty.”

Later, The Daily Star came to know that the man is actually Belal, organising secretary of ward no-12, Dhaka City North, Awami League.

OFFER OF TRANSPORT DID NOT HELP

At Sharulia under Dhaka South City Corporation, supporters of councillor candidates offered transport to voters, only to receive a lukewarm response.

“Do they [representatives] need our votes? Like in the December 30 election, someone else will cast my vote,” said Md Kamal at Sharulia Market.

Four candidates contested for the councillor post.

In front of the Kazi Ashrafuddin Primary School at Staff Quarter area, supporters of AL candidate for councillor post of ward 70 were seen asking voters to get on human hauliers to go to the polling centre.

One of supporters said the polling centre was far away. “That is why we're providing transport,” he said and hurriedly walked away.-The Daily Star