EC to use EVMs in every election: CEC

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) KM Nurul Huda has stated that the Election Commission (EC) has taken up a plan to introduce Electronic Voting Machine (EVMs) in each and every election in a bid to reduce irregularities in polls.

The CEC came up with the announcement while speaking at a training workshop of the election officials in Dhaka Friday afternoon ahead of the fifth of Upazila Parishad elections to be held from Sunday.

“We will start using of the EVMs and then there will be no scope of filling-up ballot boxes night before the polls,” said Nurul Huda.

Expressing frustration over the ongoing spate of election irregularities, Huda said the EC has introduced voters list with photographs to hold elections in a free, fair and credible manner but the effort has gone on vain.

Stressing the need for using the EVMs in the election, the CEC said the trend of irregularities in the election is gradually moving towards deterioration which has already gone out of our control.

Calling upon all election officials to discharges their duties upholding professionalism, the CEC said, “We will have to take a tough stance through proper enforcement of relevant laws in resisting the election irregularities.”

The fifth upazila parishad elections at 492 upazilas will be held in five phases starting in March.

As per the schedule, the first phase of the election is scheduled to be held on March 10, second phase on March 18, third on March 24, fourth on March 31 and the last fifth phase election will be held on June 18.

In 2014, elections in 487 upazilas were held in six phases between February and May.