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NGOs face fund-raising problems to oversee polls

By Moinuddin Naser
A section of Non—Government Organisations (NGOs) has taken up a Taka 60-iakh scheme to monitor the parliamentary election on February 27.
The organisations are now trying to obtain funds from various donor agencies to Implement the scheme.
Many of them have already received funds from different donors while others are still continuing their efforts In this regard. One of the main obstructions being faced by the NGOs In their fund—raising drive Is that the donors want certificates from the Election Commission stating that the fund-seeking organisations are officially authorised to oversee the polls.
However, the Election Commission has so far turned down all applications by these NGOs on the plea that the Election Commission has nothing to do In matters related to helping poll observers.
Meanwhile the Coordinating Council for Human Rights in Bangladesh (CCHRBJ has so far received Taka six lakh from the Ford Foundation.
The CCHRB has also organised a group of 2500 poll— watchers from 39 NGOs and has trained them.
The Human Rights implementation Committee (URIC | has also received Taka four lakh from the Asia Foundation for making a video recording I during the polls.
Meanwhile the variaou* NGOs Interested tn overseeing the polls have split over how the polls—watch should be carried out and insiders say 'hat this division may be due to matters involving seif inter ests.
At the Initial stages all the Interested NGOs met at the Invitation of a poll—watching organisation named Free Elec tion Movement but CCHRB later moved away saying that many of the NGOs had no idea about poll- watching. However it agreed to work together but submit a separate report The proposal was not accepted Many of the NGOs including association for Development Agencies of Bangladesh (ADAB) remained with the Free Elec tion Movement and decided to conduct a separate Taka fifty — lakh fund raising programme
They sought financial assistance of Taka 14 lakh from NORAD. and Taka 10 lakh from Pact Bangladesh an or ganlsatfon of USAID, showing that they have engaged about 25.000 workers throughout the country to watch the polls.
But the donors wanted to see the official authorisation of the Election Commission as a pre-condition to releasing the
The NGOs are now pressuring the Election Commission to give them no objection certificates for watching the polls. But the Election Commission refused to do so on the plea that there was. no such provision.
Insiders say that neither the Free Election Movement nor ADAB has done virtually anything to organise any working group.
When the chairman of the Free Election Movement K.M. Sobhan was contacted, he told the Daily Star that they had made a budget of Taka 25 lakhs but could not get the funds from any donor. He said that his organisation has engaged 25.000 workers to watch the polls
He said that the activities of his organisation depended on getting funds from the donors.
Polls-monltorlng was introduced in 1986 by People's Commission, which Invited a British Parliamentarian and a foreign journalist to observe the third parliament elections. In 1988 the National Democratic Institute (NDI) of United States observed the fourth parliament elections while in 1990 the NDI and CCHRB separately made their observations on upazilla elections.
After the announcement of the date for the fifth parliamentary elections this year the voluntary organisations became very active to oversee the polls.