Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Sunday expressed optimism that the upcoming parliamentary election, scheduled for February 12, will be held in a fair and peaceful manner.
He expressed the optimism while speaking at the closing session of a training programme organised by the Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh, at a city hotel.
Voter turnout in the upcoming election is expected to exceed 55 per cent, driven by political consensus and past participation trends, he said.
“I believe turnout in the election will be more than 55 per cent,” he said, recalling that participation stood at 55 per cent in the 1991 parliamentary polls.
Responding to a question, he said earlier confusion over the “Yes” vote has eased as major political parties have now expressed support for it.
“People usually vote in line with their party’s position, and since the major parties are in favour of the ‘Yes’ vote, I think it will pass quite easily,” he added.
On Pakistan’s position on participation in the World Cup cricket tournament, he said it is an internal matter and not a concern for Bangladesh.
“Pakistan never said they would not play; they said they would consider it, and our decision not to play in India is our own,” he said.
“Foreign diplomats speak here because a large segment of society wants them to speak, and we cannot always blame them,” he said in reply to another question.
United Nations Development Programme Resident Representative in Bangladesh Stefan Liller also spoke at the event.
The programme was chaired by Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh President AKM Moinuddin, while General Secretary Abu Hena Imrul Kayes also addressed the session.
