Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Kazi Habibul Awal on Sunday said if it is possible to organize national elections step by step then it can be done in a more free, fair and acceptable manner.
He said this process will help the commission to hold the elections easily.
CEC Kazi Habibul Awal made the remarks after a meeting with the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) delegation at the Nirbachan Bhavan in the capital's Agargaon area on Sunday afternoon.
Habibul Awal said we have asked TIB to make awareness on the issue of holding the national election step by step. This process will help EC to deploy more law enforce agencies which help to maintain law and to organize a free, fair and credible election.
A five-member delegation headed by TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman visited EC on Sunday.
Besides, calling the existing political hostility "acute", Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal on Sunday said making progress in this situation is challenging.
He criticised the political parties for their lack of interest in dialogue and said, "I still do not see any dialogue happening between the political parties. The antagonism is too apparent. It's going to be very difficult to make any progress amid such acute hostility."
After a meeting with the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) delegation at the election building this afternoon, Habibul Awal said that the commission does not hold unlimited power.
"The EC alone can never conduct fair elections. An acceptable election requires the cooperation of the political parties as well as the goodwill of the government," he said.
He called on all political parties to put aside their differences to engage in constructive dialogue.
The twelfth parliamentary election, held under the current election commission, saw the participation of 28 parties including the ruling Awami League while 16 others, including BNP and its allies, did not participate.
Although there had been repetitive calls for dialogue among the political parties in order to organise a participatory election, it did not happen.
The CEC also noted that representatives of civil society have a crucial role to play in it.
The TIB delegation, led by Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman, met with the CEC and other election commissioners to discuss the disclosure of affidavit information and actions against those providing false information in affidavits.
TIB recently published a full report on the 7 January election, which was also discussed at the meeting.
