The proposal for raising the limits on polls expenditure and donations to parties would pave the way for the use of black money and participation of people having huge wealth in the next parliamentary elections, politicians and experts have said.
The cabinet on Monday approved the draft amendment proposals to the Representation of the People Order (RPO) 1972, increasing the expenditure from Tk1.5m to Tk2.5m. The ceiling on donations from individuals was also increased from Tk1m to Tk2.5m, while for companies, it is now Tk5m from Tk2.5m.
Commentators expressed concern over the decision to exclude monitoring of the election expenditure, saying this would also widen the scope for using huge money during elections and increase discrimination among the candidates.
They observed that in its amendment proposals, the Election Commission (EC) had not taken any initiative to strengthen it so that the next elections would be held in a fair and credible manner.
Terming the proposals discriminatory, they alleged that the amendment did not reflect what the people want, and also that it would favour the ruling party.
BNP Standing Committee member MK Anwar declined to comment on the proposed amendments to the RPO. “We will make our position clear after going through the document,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.
‘No monitoring of expenditure to influence polls’
Meanwhile, when the cabinet approved major amendments to the RPO, it dropped some articles proposed by the EC, including the monitoring of election expenditure and the introduction of EVMs in general elections.
Tofael Ahmed, an expert on local government and elections, said the new provisions are discriminating: “Increasing the donation of individuals and companies will influence the next general elections as the honest candidates will face discrimination.”
Former election commissioner M Sakhawat Hossain said monitoring the polls expenditure was very crucial. “If dropped, it is not a good sign and it will influence the next general elections,” he said.
The provisions of the RPO are related to each other, he said. “If one is approved and another is dropped, it will be difficult to hold a free, fair and impartial election by the Election Commission.”
Both the incumbent and the previous EC proposed to include the monitoring issue in the RPO. They also implemented it during the city corporation polls.
Not monitoring the polls spending would encourage the candidates to use more money, said former cabinet secretary and election expert Ali Imam Majumder.
‘Raising expenditure unfair’
The left-leaning political parties have strongly criticised the cabinet’s approval of the draft RPO.
Ruling ally Workers Party of Bangladesh President Rashed Khan Menon told the Dhaka Tribune: “We strongly oppose the approval since the proposal has ignored recommendations made by several political parties to limit the election expenses.”
Lawmaker Menon said the approval had been done without any discussion with the political parties.
Communist Party of Bangladesh President Mujahidul Islam Selim told the Dhaka Tribune that by increasing candidates’ expenditure, the government had disregarded the political parties’ views and public expectation.
Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal General Secretary Khalequzzaman said while the political parties demanded a cut to election expense to reduce influence of money in polls, the government has increased the limit.
“It seems like legalising the culture of buying votes,” he told the Dhaka Tribune.