President M Abdul Hamid on Thursday received the names of 10 individuals recommended by the search committee to be appointed in the next five-member Election Commission.
The president will now review the names and finalize five for appointment as the chief election commissioner and four other commissioners, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam said.
Two names have been proposed for each post.
He said that the chosen names would soon be published through a gazette notification.
The president appreciated the efforts of the members of the six-member search committee he had earlier formed with the task of recommending names for the next EC whose most challenging task will be to conduct the general elections scheduled for 2023.
He hoped that the recommendations would help him form a strong and acceptable EC to conduct free and fair national and local elections during its five-year tenure, according to his Press Secretary Jaynal Abedin.
Justice SM Quddus Zaman, a member of the search committee, led the committee’s meeting with the president at Bangabhaban.
The other members of the committee – Auditor General and Controller of Bangladesh Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury, Bangladesh Public Service Commission Chairman Md Sohrab Hossain, and former election commissioner Muhammad Sohul Hossain and author Anwara Syed Haque – were present.
The committee’s head, Justice Obaidul Hassan of the Appellate Division, could not attend.
Cabinet Secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam, Secretary to the President Sampad Barua, Military Secretary Major General SM Salah Uddin Islam, Press Secretary to the President Joynal Abedin, Secretary (Joint) Md Wahidul Islam Khan and Cabinet Secretary (Coordination and Reforms) Md Samsul were present at the time.
The search committee held a series of meetings with eminent citizens and civil society representatives since its formation early this month. It also received names from most of the 39 registered political parties, including ruling Awami League.
BNP and several other parties did not give names.
This is the first time an EC is being formed under a law mandated by the constitution. The law on the appointment of the CEC and other commissioners was passed by the parliament on January 27.
The tenure of the immediate past EC, led by KM Nurul Huda, expired on February 14 amid allegations of inefficient handling of the 2018 parliamentary polls and the recent violence-marred UP elections.
