Information Minister Hasan Mahmud came down heavily on the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) for their report regarding the anomalies in the December 30 general election.
Speaking at a press briefing at his Dewanji Pukurpar residence in Chittagong city on Wednesday, the minister termed the report “one-sided” and “fictitious,” and said it was aimed at tarnishing the country’s image.
“There are some agencies and organizations which aim to besmirch the country’s reputation, instead of brightening it. TIB is one of them. They often publish what they claim to be their research work. But we have seen in the past that their research does not yield accurate results," said Hasan, also the publicity and publication secretary of the Awami League.
"Most TIB reports are politically motivated, faulty and biased. The organization cooked up a story saying massive irregularities had taken place in the Padma Bridge construction, which ultimately tainted the country's image. Later, a Canadian court found no evidence of corruption in the project. Now, they have come up with a study on the polls," he further added.
The TIB unveiled its report on the 11th general election, titled “Review of 11th Jatiya Sangsad Election Process,” on Tuesday, in which it said the polls had been partially participatory.
The TIB surveyed randomly selected 50 constituencies out of the 299 where polling took place, and found evidence of election irregularities in 47 constituencies. They alleged that the irregularities ranged from ballot stuffing the night before and taking over polling booths on the election day, to casting fake votes, barring voters from going to polling stations, forcing them to vote for a specific symbol, and blocking opposition polling agents from going to the polling centres.
Criticizing the TIB, the information minister said: “The 11th parliamentary election were held amid a relatively peaceful environment, which was lauded internationally. Different heads of state congratulated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the Awami League and the Grand Alliance after the elections.
“But the statement issued by the BNP-Oikya Front on the election and the TIB report are almost identical. TIB in its report conveniently forgot to mention that several Awami League members had been killed in election violence,” he added.
“It is unprecedented to nominate 800 people for 300 seats, and BNP shamelessly did it. There is no mention of this nomination trade in the TIB report. It amply proves that the study is a figment of their imagination. The report was published to favour the opposition party and their baseless allegations,” the minister further said.
Urging the TIB to work for the welfare of the country and its people, Hasan also issued a warning to the anti-graft watchdog: “Don’t question the peaceful election which was praised both at home and abroad. Refrain from publishing fictitious reports.”
