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JS-Upazila Polls

Defaulters may get chance to contest by rescheduling loans

Staff Correspondent
The Election Commission (EC) might in the end allow loan defaulters to contest upazila and parliamentary polls by rescheduling their loans before filing nominations, said EC sources.
For that, the government will . need to relax or suspend the stipulations in the Representation of People Order (RPO) limiting time for rescheduling debt to qualify as a candidate in the local and national polls.
If the EC sticks to its plans for holding upazila elections on October 23 and parliamentary polls in December, the loan defaulters will not be able to reschedule loans in time to be eligible for candidacy.
Long delay in promulgation of the ordinance revising the RPO is the main reason for time constraints.
As per the new electoral provisions, a person with records of loan default in six months preceding the submission of nomination will be disqualified as a candidate in the general election. Those who want to run in the upazila polls must not have a history of loan default in the year before filing of the candidacy application, says Upazila Parishad Ordinance-2008.
Initially, the commission was planning to declare that those who would pay off their loans before submitting nominations would be eligible for election. It did the same in August 4 polls.
But it might have to back off from the plans for fear that the new provisions would be challenged at courts, an EC Secretariat official said in return for anonymity.
Besides, he added, as the national election is conducted on a much larger canvas, the policies on loan defaulters in the city corporation and municipality polls are far less likely to work here.
Meanwhile, speaking at a seminar Sunday, legal experts warned Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda that the defaulters might take the commission to courts for not allowing them time to sort out loan problems.
The following day the EC met to review the RPO provisions, and decided in principle to go for further amendment, said EC Secretariat sources.
After a consultation with the political parties, the commission would suggest that the government amend the RPO to suspend the restrictions on loan defaulters for the upazila and parliamentary polls, they added.
The EC faced similar problems in the recent local body polls with some prospective candidates complaining they did not get the stipulated one year's time to reschedule debts.
It, however, did not change the rules then. The gazette notification on City Corporation Election Ordinance-2008 was published on May 14 and the elections were held on August 4.
CURBS ON NGO OFFICIALS
The commission is also likely to ease the restrictions on NGO officials' participation in the parliamentary polls.
According to the new electoral provisions, a person who is holding or has resigned from the chief executive's post of a nongovernment organisation shall be disqualified for election to parliament unless three years have passed since his resignation, retirement or discharge.
In response to discontent among the NGOs run by local funds, the EC now plans to excuse them from the restriction, sources in the EC said.
In the original proposals for electoral reforms, the curb was meant for only the nongovernment organisations run on foreign grants or donations.
But the caretaker government made it applicable to all NGOs, causing anger and frustration among the NGOs registered with the Social Welfare Directorate as charity organisations and do not receive foreign funds or grant.