Dhaka: The Bangladesh Election Commission Thursday ordered government officials to refrain from campaigning for ‘yes’ vote in the upcoming referendum, which is scheduled to be held alongside the general elections February 12, calling such acts a “punishable offence”.
The interim government of Muhammad Yunus had engaged government officials to campaign for the ‘yes’ vote in the referendum.
“Engaging in such campaigning could influence the outcome of the referendum and would therefore be treated as a punishable offence under Section 21 of the Referendum Ordinance, 2025, and Article 86 of the RPO, 1972,” an Election Commission (EC) letter sent to returning officers read.
It said “persons employed in the service of the Republic might inform or raise awareness among the public about the referendum, but they are strictly prohibited from urging voters to cast ballots in favour of either ‘Yes’ or ‘No'” under the laws of the land.
Deputy commissioners, who are administrative chiefs of districts, are appointed as returning officers during the election.
EC officials said copies of the directive were also sent for “information and effective enforcement” to the cabinet secretary, Yunus’ principal secretary, all ministries and law enforcement agencies, including Bangladesh police.
The government apparatus earlier was engaged to spearhead a campaign for the ‘yes’ vote in the plebiscit,e while the EC order came amid growing criticism and questions if the interim government could conduct such a campaign.
In line with a Bangladesh Bank order, the commercial banks too display ‘yes’ vote banners alongside the government offices, while the central bank also asked the banks to use their CSR funds to support NGO campaigns for the plebiscite.
Several legal experts said since the referendum asks voters to choose either “yes” or “no”, the interim government was expected to maintain an impartial position instead of adopting an openly partisan role, when doing so involved spending a considerable amount of public money.
Some jurists also questioned the legitimacy of the referendum itself since the Bangladesh Constitution kept no provision for such a plebiscite, while the government got the proposal signed by President Mohammed Shahabuddin and subsequently issued an official gazette.
The referendum is set to be held to elicit public consent on a Yunus-announced 84-point reform proposal called “July National Charter-2025”.
The charter was announced in a drummed-up ceremony October 17 after a protracted consultation between the political parties and the National Consensus Commission, headed by Yunus, with his special assistant Ali Riaz being its co-chair.
Announcing the charter, Yunus had said it represented a move toward a “civilised society from barbarism”.
In a nationwide address earlier this month, Yunus sought a “yes” vote for his administration’s reform package in the upcoming referendum alongside the parliamentary elections.
“Vote ‘Yes’ to build the state according to your expectations. By choosing ‘Yes,’ you open the door to creating a new Bangladesh,” he said in a televised address, adding that the consent for the reform proposals would “free the country from discrimination, exploitation and oppression”.
Riaz, key author of the charter, earlier said some quarters raised questions about whether government servants could campaign in favour of a ‘Yes’ vote, citing legal ground,s but “there is no prohibition anywhere in the Constitution, existing laws, or the RPO (The Representation of the People Order) regarding this matter”.
The referendum ballot features a single question covering four major reform areas of the July Charter, while voters are instructed to vote “yes” if they agree more strongly with the proposals and “no” if they disagree.
But critics said “yes or no” voting in the dual election could appear difficult for voters to make their choice over the charter containing multiple complex reforms, and even informed voters might support some changes but oppose others.
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