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EC sends poll reform proposals to govt

Staff Correspondent
The Election Commission (EC) yesterday sent the much talked about finalised electoral reform proposals to the government for making them into law's.
In the proposals, the EC seelcs to make it mandatory for parliamentary political parties to be registered with the commission for contesting in general elections.
It also suggests stipulated internal reforms for the parties to be eligible for registration, in a bid to ensure financial transparency and democracy within the organisations.
EC Secretary Humayun Kabir confirmed The Daily Star yesterday afternoon chat the electoral reform proposals were sent to the law ministry that will place them before the council of advisers to the military backed caretaker government, for its consideration before the president promulgates them as laws.
Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed in his much-awaited address to the nation on Monday night spoke about making the proposals into laws soon.
"The process of promulgating the Election Commission proposed amended electoral law, rules and regulations is at the final stage. We hope that political parties will spontaneously come forward to take steps towards reforms, in conformity with the electoral law, rules and regulations," the chief adviser said.
In its proposals the EC also seeks the authority to cancel candidatures on grounds of irregularities, the power to bar convicted war criminals from contesting in polls, and restrictions on retired military personnel, civil servants, and NGO
officials in contesting in polls.
According to die proposals, a retired civil or military bureaucrat will not be allowed to nin for membership in the parliament until three years have elapsed since retirement. Similar provision has been suggested for officials of NGOs that receive foreign grants.
Loan defaulters will have to reschedule their loans at least six months ahead of filing applications for candidacy while utility bill defaulters will have to clear all due bills three months ahead of filing such applications.
The EC also wants to fix a ceiling for election expenditure of candidates •• proportionate to the numbers of voters in respective constituencies, while stipulating that none will be allowed to contest for more than three constituencies simultaneously.
The EC. wants to introduce a 'no-vote' system with a provision
for fresh election to a constituency if 51 percent voters there cast 'no votes', meaning they did not like any of the candidates.
In an effort to ensure public access to information, the EC proposes that all documents submitted by contesting political parties and candidates should be kept accessible to the public for a year for scrutiny.
It also proposes that an electoral dispute should be settled within six months of filing a complaint, and the deadline cannot be extended even if a High Court bench adjudicating the dispute is reconstituted with the case pending.
Constituted following the declaration of the state of emergency in 2007, the current EC claims that its electoral reform proposals aim to free the electoral process from the influence of muscle and money, both black and white, and to create an atmosphere encouraging hon
est and dedicated political leaders to contest in elections.
The EC suggests the government to promulgate new laws for holding parliamentary polls scrapping the current Representation of People's Order 1972, popularly known as RPO.
To that end. the commission sent a fresh draft of RPO 2008 to the law ministry.
It also sent two separate draft rules on political parties' registration. and on a code of conduct for political parties and candidates contesting in parliamentary' polls, for vetting only since the EC itself is empowered to promulgate the rules.
Holding talks with political parties and civil society personalities over the last one year, the EC finalised the electoral reform proposals, die first draft of which was made public on April 5 of lastyear