Ruling party backed candidate bogging down in CCC election in Bangladesh

by Special Correspondent
June 18, 2010

http://www.weeklyblitz.net/809/ruling-party-backed-candidate-bogging-down-in-ccc

LATEST: Bangladesh Nationalist Party [BNP]-backed Mohammad Manjur Alam has won the Chittagong City Corporation [CCC] mayoral race by defeating his archrival ruling Bangladesh Awami League-supported candidate ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury by 95,528 votes.

Announcing the results at about 10:25am on Friday, Returning officer Jesmin Tuli said Manjur has unofficially been elected mayor by bagging a total of 479,145 votes.

The election official said Manjur's nearest contestant Mohiuddin has polled 383,617 votes, reports our staff correspondent in Chittagong. A total of 8,85,064 voters cast their vote out of 16,88,677 and 35,506 votes were suspended.

Independent candidate Syed Shamsuzzoha got the lowest number of votes, only 667, among seven contenders finally contested the Thursday's mayoral election. Meanwhile, a eighth candidate supported by the Jatiya Party, a partner of the governing coalition, had earlier become ineffective though he did not withdrew his candidacy from the Election Commission.

ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury, a long-time Mayor of Chittagong City Corporation [CCC] and a very controversial figure in the country, who pretended to have been physically paralyzed when the military backed interim government netted with numerous charges including series of corruption and misappropriation of public money, is possibly getting bogged into the Bay of Bengal, in the just concluded election of Chittagong City Corporation. When the military backed government declared election date, this Mohiuddin Chowdhury in seconds jumped up from the wheelchair to political dias, thus proving himself as a champion political culprit.

It may be mentioned here that, most of the heavyweight leaders of the ruling party, including ministers went to Chittagong to campaign in favor of their party's candidate ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury. On the other hand, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, main opposition of the ruling party in Bangladesh, extended its support for another candidate named M Monzurul Alam.

Rulling party candidate Mohiuddin Chowdhury was over-confident about his victory in the election. But, Thursday's poll result surely has pressed his head inside the soil. It has been very loud and clear that, residents under Chittagong City Corporation has rejected the policies of the present ruling party in Bangladesh as well as their own candidate ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury.

He [Mohiuddin Chowdhury] is known as a corrupt person, who visibly looted public money during his tenure by using his personal and political influence. He is also known for his audacious behavior with the people.

During this just concluded election, the ruling party and the entire administration [except the Election Commission] tried their best in making Mohiuddin Chowdhury victorious in the Chittagong City Corporation election. Just hours before the election, at the instruction of 'high-ups', police in Chittagong briefly arrested and harrassed eminent politician and parliamentarian and extremely popular figure in Chittagong, Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, who is a leader of Bangladesh Nationalist Party. Later it was proved that, police was instructed by some unknown figures in the government to unnecessarily harrass this senior politician. This particular incident generated serious concern and anger in the minds of voters. And now the result is clear to all.

This will be a big slap on the face of the government by the people of Chittagong, just in less than two year, when in 2008, Bangladesh Awami League bagged landslide victory in the general election.

Since assuming in power, the ruling party is continuing to violate most of its electoral pledges, it made to the entire nation. Repression of press, suffocation of freedom of expression, corruption, nepotism, extortion, state-patronized terror and various forms of crimes are on ever increasing trend. Some of the leaders and ministers in the ruling party are behaving like mere medieval lords. And surely, the ruling party is finally getting back the 'exact price' of its deeds.

Rulling party's electoral symbol is boat, while their CCC candidate Mohiuddin Chowdhury's electoral symbol was Ship. With the announced results of CCC election, it can be easily assessed that the very image of the ruling party is already at stake in Bangladesh.

It is now almost clear that, Bangladesh Nationalist Party backed candidate M Monzurul Alam is the next mayor of Chittagong City Corporation. No doubt, Mohiuddin Chowdhury and the state machinery will make every possible attempts in putting the new mayor into great trouble. But, hopefully, Mr. Alam will be able to overcome all such obstacles with the help of his voters and supporters as well as with those who did not vote for him. From the ground of Chittagong, let new example begin in Bangladesh, where the next mayor will teach, how a winning side should behave in any civilized society.

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