Archive for June 24th, 2008
Tuesday, June 24th, 2008The home ministry yesterday said easing of the Emergency Power Rules (EPR) would also apply to the other city corporation and municipalities if schedules are declared for polls there during the state of emergency.In a press release it sought to clear up 'misunderstandings' over the notification it issued Friday relaxing the EPR to allow processions and rallies in areas going to polls.The same day the Election Commission (EC) announced election schedules for four city corporations and nine municipalities. Polls to the 13 local government bodies will be held on August 4.The release said some newspapers on June 22 carried ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Divisions within the major political parties including Awami League (AL) and BNP seem growing with the local ranks vying for nominations to contest the August 4 polls to four city corporations and nine municipalities.Alongside intra-party disputes, rivalry between prospective candidates within alliances too is obvious. In four divisional headquarters, AL and BNP leaders seeking nomination for mayoral elections brace themselves for challenges coming from components of the 14-party and four-party alliances.In Rajshahi, dispute between the Workers Party politburo member Fazle Hossain Badsha and city AL General Secretary AHM Khairuzzaman Liton for mayor nomination has already grown intense.As many ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Voter lists in around 200 upazilas will be ready in July third week, facilitating the Election Commission (EC) plan to announce poll schedule for upazila parishads in the first phase.The EC plans to hold the long overdue polls to upazila parishads in phases before the parliamentary elections. Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda on Sunday also said the commission would announce the schedule in a month.The commission will take a decision on appropriate time to announce the schedule, Election Commissioner Muhammed Sohul Hussain told The Daily Star over telephone yesterday."It's been decided that we'll hold upazila elections before the ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008The Department of Immigration and Passport (DIP) could start issuing machine-readable passports and visas from July next year as a Tk 560 crore fresh project for this purpose has been included in the Annual Development Programme of 2008-2009.The project, awaiting approval, is required for Bangladesh to comply with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) deadline of April 2010 for completing the job."Once implemented, the Department of Immigration and Passport hopes to start issuing machine-readable passports (MRP) and machine-readable visas (MRV) from July next year," said Abdur Rob Hawlader, director general (DG) of DIP.This fresh move follows the abandonment ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Suvadda Khal (canal), lifeline of Keraniganj upazila in Dhaka, is now getting back its earlier look as the canal that dried up completely more than three years ago was partly re-excavated by the authorities recently.Although the 8.5-km canal is far from returning to its state 15 years back, it has now become a channel through which boats ferry people and various goods between the Buriganga and Rajendrapur in Keraniganj. Re-excavation of 02-km stretch of the canal is still to be completed to link the Buriganga and the Dhaleshwari as in the past.Of the two other canals in Keraniganj --Char ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Despite the relaxation of restrictions on 'indoor politics' in the capital for more than nine months now, BNP could not hold a single meeting of its standing committee or the national executive committee during the period.Meanwhile, Khandaker Delwar Hossain, chairperson appointed secretary general of the party also the executive chief of Khaleda loyalist faction, has been taking most of the major decisions unilaterally, claiming that his decisions have been directly guided by the directives of detained party chief Khaleda Zia.On the other hand, the rival faction currently led by Maj (retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed has been basically absent from ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed has directed the ministries and departments concerned to implement the Bangladesh Better Business Forum's (BBBF) recommendations, which are under implementation process, in next two months to attain desired dynamism in trade and economy.The head of the caretaker government, also chairperson of the BBBF, a high-profile body of government-private sector partnership formed last year, gave the directive while chairing a meeting of the forum at his office yesterdayOn progress in implementation of the decisions taken at the previous meeting held on April 23, yesterday's meeting, the forum's fourth since its inception, was informed that six decisions regarding ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008The government will hold discussions with the political parties to resolve misunderstandings over holding of the elections to local government bodies prior to the parliamentary election.“There may be some misunderstandings over the local government polls. We will take more steps and hold direct talks with the parties to make everything clear,” Education and Commerce Adviser Hossain Zillur Rahman said when asked if the government would confront the major parties, which had announced to oppose and resist the local bodies polls.He was talking to the reporters after a meeting with Communications and Public Works Adviser Ghulam Quader at the Secretariat yesterday.Zillur ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) ATM Shamsul Huda yesterday observed that the country's political culture has to be changed to establish democracy in the true sense.A lawmaker should not participate in local development programmes for which the local chairmen are responsible, he said.Everyone has to play his or her role in changing conventional ideas and beliefs for the betterment of the people, he added.In the port city of Chittagong, CEC Huda, along with the two other election commissioners Sahul Hossain and Brig Gen (retd) Shakhawat Hossain, was taking views and opinions from the people regarding the draft of the recent ...
(read more) Tuesday, June 24th, 2008Former prime minister and Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina, now in Washington, called for parliament election before other polls to restore democracy in the country.Addressing a meeting marking the 59th founding anniversary of the Awami League in the US capital, she asked her party men to foil all conspiracies and ensure victory in the parliamentary polls.Hasina said Awami League was born for establishing democracy and the rights of the people, according to a message received in Dhaka yesterday.In reply to a question from the workers, she said, “I've no reservation about anyone. I want to work together with all ...
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