With the municipal elections only days away, campaigning for the candidates is in full swing in Jamalpur municipal area.
However, only candidates backed by the Awami League and the BNP seem to be out and about running their campaigns. Candidates of other political parties are still absent from the field, sources said.
Awami League and BNP-supported candidates have adopted different tactics to win favours with the voters in Jamalpur municipal area. They are participating in local events to be close to people and exchange ideas and views, or listen to the commoners’ woes.
The main two candidates are current Mayor and BNP’s Jamalpur district unit General Secretary Advocate Shah Md Wares Ali Mamun, and former mayor and Awami League’s Jamapur district Vice-President Mieza Sakhawatul Alam Roni.
Mamun has served as a mayor for two terms, including the current term, and have a generally positive impression among the voters for his development work in the municipal area.
In the last municipal elections in 2010, Mamun won by defeating Awami League candidate Ad Aman Ullah Akash by a huge margin of votes. He is well known in the area for his organisational skills as well as his good leadership.
“I am dedicated toward the development of this municipality and the people,” Mamun told local reporters.
Sakhawat, who also served as a mayor for two terms, echoed Mamun’s sentiment as well.
“I have always stood with the people, and I will always remain with them,” he told the Dhaka Tribune. “I have worked to develop this municipality area in my terms. The voters will not regret choosing me as their mayor.”
Meanwhile, local sources said while the two candidates have been actively campaigning for themselves, the BNP-backed campaign have been struggling a bit.
“That is because many followers and activists of the party have been in hiding. They fear that if they are out and about, they will get arrested. They have not been living in their own homes since the campaigning started, because police have been frequenting their houses looking for them,” a party insider said.