Voter awareness is the key

The first step for updating the voter list should be to make arrangements for availability of the present inaccurate and faulty voter list, at least upto union level, so that the members of the political parties, the civil society as well as NGOs can find out the real problems with the existing one. Nobody can deny the fact that in the rural areas all the voters, irrespective of caste, creed or religious faith, are known to the people of the area. Therefore, it will be easier for all to identify the false, fictitious and bogus voters, and rectification of the electoral roll will accordingly be easier.

Besides correction and updating of the voter list, extensive and elaborate voter education program are also needed for making the voters aware of the correct procedures for casting their votes. This will definitely reduce the percentage of false and invalid voting.

While updating the voter list the relevant officials involved in the task should ensure that the list contains names of all known persons who are eligible to vote in the ensuing parliament election. During the process of updating of the list the following procedures should, as far as possible, be ensured for better coordination and more acceptable result.

• Displaying the voter list publicly for inspection of all, including the members of political parties.
• Providing the voter list to political parties, civil society organizations and NGOs for scrutiny.
• Making additions, deletions or corrections to the voter list, based on filed claims and objections.
• Resolving disputes lodged by political parties, civil society organizations, NGOs or citizens concerning the inclusion or exclusion of particular individuals from the voter list.

These steps in the updating process will enable the representatives of political parties, civil society members, NGO workers and people in general to identify the actual false and fictitious names. Once the job of identification of false, duplicate and extra voters is done, it will be easier to delete them within the shortest possible time. Moreover, the participation of representatives of political parties in the process of updating the voter list will reduce the tension and misunderstanding amongst them, especially about false voting.

Finally, the revising officers, their assistants and others associated with the updating process of the voter list must ensure that the voting population as a whole has easy access to the process. This will ultimately enable them to exercise their voting right in the next parliament election.

Equally important is a voter education program. Generally, such programs undertaken for voter education ensure that voters participate more effectively in elections; voters become more knowledgeable about voting procedures, make better use of party and campaign information to make election decisions, and are better informed about the form of government that will result as an outcome of the election. This knowledge will, to a large extent, help to increase turnout of the voters, reduce tension and intolerance, and increase the likelihood that election results will be accepted even in a conflicting situation.

The constitutions of many of the developing countries normally confer universal adult franchise on all citizens irrespective of caste, creed, religion, sex etc., although the percentage of illiterate people in those countries is around, or less, than fifty percent. But to exercise the right of franchise, and the other democratic rights conferred on the citizens by the constitution, effectively and judiciously; awareness should be created in them. Any non-exercise of their valuable rights will cause distortions in the political system and will lead to a situation which will fail to truly reflect the will of the people, which is what democracy is all about.

Regarding our existing voter list prepared by the Election Commission, violating the guidelines of the higher courts, a recent survey of the National Democratic Institute (NDI) has revealed that a total of 1.22 crore names are either extra or duplicated.

Different local election monitoring agencies and political parties have also been pointing out such defects for quite some time. But the Election Commission under the leadership of Justice MA Aziz and SM Zakaria played some dirty tricks in making a voter list of their choice and liking, and did not pay any heed to those allegations, resulting in many political problems.

In many countries the official machinery undertakes the revision of electoral rolls by periodic house-to-house enumeration. After house-to-house visits a draft roll is published, and claims and objections are invited. But many people do not avail of this opportunity and do not file any claim or objection. Only at the time of a general elections, or bye-elections, when they find that their names are not included in the rolls do they wake up and approach the election authorities for inclusion of their names. To avoid such a situation, and to create awareness amongst the people to be alert and on the lookout for an opportunity to ensure that their names are included in the rolls, awareness programs need to be undertaken to educate the voters in a planned and organized way.

Some apathy on the part of the electors is seen at the time of actual polling also. According to one study, the voter turnout at the general elections in most of the under-developed countries normally ranges between fifty and sixty percent. But in some countries the percentage of voters is much lower. Generally the candidate who secures the largest number of votes is declared elected, irrespective of whether he or she has got a majority of registered votes or not. There is a general trend in the developing countries that the number of contesting candidates is comparatively large, and in many constituencies the number is even more than ten. If under these circumstances the voter turnout is also below fifty percent the result naturally fails to reflect the mandate of the people.

Therefore, the electors have to be educated about the importance of their right of franchise. The need for voter education programs is all the more important for the voters of the less developed countries like Bangladesh, where the percentage of literacy is still not very high.

From an analysis of the 2001 election, it was observed that the percentage of invalid votes ranges from 0.50 to 6.90. In a few constituencies the number of invalid votes was found to be more than the winning margin. In other words, if none of the votes had become invalid, and if all those valid votes had gone in favour of the second candidate, the result would have been different.

Accordingly, it becomes necessary to educate the voters on the correct method of voting so that their ballot papers are not declared invalid. For this purpose, copies of instructions to electors for marking ballot papers need to be printed/photocopied/ cyclostyled and distributed through political parties and contesting candidates, or through relevant government agencies. These instructions may also be inserted as advertisements in the newspapers, if necessary funds are available. TV and radio channels can also be used for this purpose.

Voter education in some countries is done by a number of organizations. These include the Independent Electoral Commission, political parties and non-governmental organizations. A programme similar to voter education is designed and run for election personnel throughout the country. This is to ensure that the less educated voters and the uneducated and the ill-informed election officials get proper training and education for effective management of electoral affairs. Less educated and uneducated voters are normally targeted by such organizations, and their programmes are generally designed according to the electoral act of the country.

Anyway, the Australian Election Commission in particular undertakes both continuous long-term and election-specific civic education activities to promote a better understanding of the electoral system in the community. In particular, young people are a major focus of these activities. They have many years of experience of providing non-partisan civic education programs with regard to elections. The term "civic education" can have a variety of meanings, ranging from instruction in the responsibilities of citizenship and the mechanics of government to indoctrination in political ideology.

And finally, in a developing country like Bangladesh, where the literacy rate is not that high, the media can be a partner in voter education, augmenting communication and so contributing to the success of the electoral process. Its role is to keep voters informed and to assist in developing a general democratic culture and a democratic election culture, prior to, during and after elections. It can also discourage political intolerance and encourage healthy competition among election participants.

Zahid Hossain is a political analyst.