The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association is set to hold today its biannual polls to choose members of its executive committee amid boycott by one of the two contesting panels.
'All preparations have been completed and the polls will be held on Sunday,' BGMEA election commission member Nagibul Islam Dipu, told New Age on Saturday evening.
Asked how the polls would be held with one of the two contesting panels boycotting it, Dipu said they had heard about the boycott but had not received anything in writing about their decision.
Dipu, however said that the commission had received a letter from one panel requesting that the polls be deferred.
The boycotting panel, led by former BGMEA president Anwar-ul-Alam Chowdhury Parvez, on Saturday said they would not take part in the polls in protest at alleged bias of the election commission.
'The election commission and the incumbent BGMEA executive board are holding the polls at their whim which indicates that it is beint done at the behest of a vested quarter,' said a statement signed by Parvez on Saturday.
'Results of the polls have been predetermined so the Forum has decided not to take part in a farcical election,' the statement added.
The BGMEA president, Abdus Salam Murshedy, told New Age on Saturday night that the voters' list had been corrected by the commission and it had been hung at the BGMEA Bhaban. 'If any disqualified voter can show valid documents, they can cast their votes,' he added.
Murshedy, who is a senior leader of Sammilita Parishad, said,' It would be unfortunate if the Forum boycotts the polls. I hope they will take part in the polls finally.'
The BGMEA polls, earlier scheduled for February 24, were proponed following allegation that a large number of fake voters had been registered. The election commission stepped in for its correction after the two panels signed a memorandum of understanding.
Later 748 out of 3,259 voters were found to have incorrect documents.
The Forum alleged that the election commission was going to conduct the polls before correcting the voters' list.
The 27-strong BGMEA executive board has 20 directors from the factory owners in the Dhaka region and 7 from Chittagong region.
Read the original story on the daily New Age
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