In this day of social media and political correctness, it’s natural that political aspirants will try to reach their constituents in the most appealing and innovative manner.
Candidates have been seen posting video messages and infographics on different platforms. One aspirant even posted a video of himself singing along with a rapper.
However, Saimum Sarwar Komol, incumbent lawmaker and Awami League’s candidate for Cox’s Bazar 3, went the extra mile to connect with his constituent demographics. His campaign strategists brought out campaign posters in Arakanese, the vernacular of Rakhine ethnic minorities.
Although there is no official data on the number of people from Rakhine ethnic minorities in Cox’s Bazar 3 constituency, locals say there are at least 15,000 of them living in the area.
Posters of Komol in Arakanese were found hanging across the Cox’s Bazar Sadar and Ramu area.
The Dhaka Tribune approached Komol and his campaign team to learn more about this innovative strategy, but they are yet to respond to requests for comment at the time of filing this report.
The total number of voters in Cox’s Bazar constituency is 4,14,036. Among them, 21,64,24 are male and 19,76,12 are female.
The constituency is considered to be a stronghold of BNP, however, Komol won unopposed in the 2014 election with the ruling party’s ticket.
