The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The Election Commission (EC) is expected to announce the poll schedule in October after completion of all the preparations.

"The task of preparing the voter list is at the final stage. We do hope that we will be able to announce the poll schedule after completion of this task and taking all preparations by October," Election Commissioner Brig Gen (Retd) M Sakhawat Hossain said this while talking to reporters at his office yesterday.

He said the election schedule should be announced by October if election is take place by December in accordance with the roadmap of the EC declared on July 15 last year.

The Election Commissioner said the Commission is planning to extend the time to get registered with the EC to contest the polls.

"The political parties will be given three months, and if necessary, four months--even up to the time before announcement of the election schedule--for the registration purpose," he said.

He said the Commission has to extend the time period up to September or October as three months were kept in the roadmap for the purpose.

"The matter of registering the political parties is related to finalisation of the electoral laws. The political parties should be given the time so that they can come to get registered after completing all the requisite tasks," he added.

Shakhawat Hossain said the political parties would get three months -April, May and June of 2008-- for registration after finalising the reform of electoral laws.

Replying to a question he said the draft of electoral laws would be sent to the Ministry of Law next Sunday and it would be readied within this month.

Asked whether the Commission would discuss the matter of resuming political activities over the country, as the parties need to run their offices at different levels to get registered with the EC, Sakhawat Hossain replied in the affirmative.

He, however, said that the Commission would discuss with the government so that all arrangements, which the parties need to conduct their activities to get registered, have been done.

"We will discuss with the government in this regard immediately after they get the final laws in hand," he said.

According to the draft of Political Party Registration Rules, the parties would have to submit the list of party committees of different tiers.