An overview of the CUCSU election

A total of 27,516 voters are registered for the Chittagong University student parliament polls

The Chittagong University Central Students’ Union (CUCSU) and hall and hostel union elections are being held on Wednesday after a 35-year gap.

The polls will form a 26-strong central union for a one-year term, along with unions for 14 residential halls and a hostel.

Five student representatives nominated by CUCSU will also become members of the university’s highest policy-making body — the Senate.

CUCSU ELECTION
Number of post Total Voters: 27,516 Total Posts: 26 Total Candidates: 415 Male Candidates: 368 Female Candidates: 47	Post name	Number of candidates
	Vice-President (VP)	24
	General Secretary (GS)	22
	Joint General Secretary	21
	Sports Secretary	12
	Assistant Sports Secretary	14
	Literary, Cultural and Publications Secretary	17
	Assistant Literary, Cultural and Publications Secretary	15
	Office Secretary	17
	Assistant Office Secretary	14
	Female Welfare Secretary	13
	Assistant Female Welfare Secretary	10
	Science and ICT Secretary	11
	Research and Innovation Secretary	12
	Social Welfare and Environment Secretary	20
	Health Affairs Secretary	15
	Liberation War and Democratic Movements Secretary	17
	Career Development and International Affairs Secretary	16
	Communication and Accommodation Secretary	17
	Assistant Communication and Accommodation Secretary	14
	Law and Human Rights Secretary:	9
	Library and Cafeteria Secretary	20
	Candidates Against 5 Member Posts	85

Under the Chittagong University Act, 1973, both CUCSU and hall elections are supposed to be held annually. However, since the university’s establishment in 1966, student union elections have been held only six times before this one.

• The first election was in 1970, when Chhatra League’s Mohammad Ibrahim and Abdur Rab were elected vice president (VP) and general secretary (GS) respectively. Rab was killed on Apr 13, 1971 during a battle with Pakistani forces in Rangunia.
• In the 1972 election, Chhatra Union’s Shamsuzzaman Hira became VP and Mahmudur Rahman Manna (JSD Chhatra League) was elected GS.
• In 1974, JSD Chhatra League candidates SM Fazlul Haque and Golam Jelani Chowdhury were elected VP and GS respectively.
• In 1979, Mazharul Haque Shah Chowdhury (from the JSD Chhatra League) became VP, while Jamir Chowdhury (from the Awami League-backed Chhatra League) was elected GS.
• The 1981 election saw Jasim Uddin Sarkar and Abdul Gaffar of Islami Chhatra Shibir elected as VP and GS.
• The sixth and last election before this one was held on Feb 8, 1990, when Nazim Uddin (National Chhatra League, from All-party Student Unity) was elected VP, and Azim Uddin Ahmed (Socialist Students’ Front) became GS.

Chittagong University currently has 14 residential halls -- nine for male students and five for female students -- in addition to the Artist Rashid Chowdhury Hostel. Each of the 15 halls will have one polling centre located across five buildings.

According to the constitution, only students admitted through entrance examinations in the first year and who are still enrolled can vote, bringing the total number of eligible voters to 27,516. Any registered voter can also contest in the CUCSU or hall elections.

The central union will consist of 26 elected members, while each hall union will have 14 members, including the hostel union.

The Election Commission, composed of 15 teachers and officials led by the chief election commissioner, is overseeing the polls.

Voting will take place using optical mark recognition (OMR) ballots, which will be machine-counted. Polls will open at 9am and continue until 4pm.

Each ballot paper will feature security codes to prevent forgery, along with candidate names and ballot numbers. Where candidates share the same name, nicknames will be used for distinction.

The results of the polls will be announced at the Faculty of Business Administration building.

After 35 years, 13 full or partial panels are contesting this election.

The Election Commission officially announced the schedule for the CUCSU election on Aug 28. Following the publication of the draft voter list on Sept 1 and subsequent verification, the final voter list was published on Sept 11.

The distribution of nomination papers began on Sept 14 month and concluded on Sept 17. After scrutiny, the preliminary list of candidates was published on Sept 21.

The final list of candidates was then published on Sept 25.

Although Oct 12 was initially fixed as the election date, it was later postponed to Oct 15 following demands from the students.

Speaking to bdnews24.com on Monday morning, AKM Ariful Haque Siddique, member secretary of the CUCSU Election Commission, said:

"The overall environment is good so far. The last-minute minor tasks that remain are currently under way."

"The major election-related work has already been completed. All necessary preparations, including ballot boxes and ballot papers, have also been finalised," he added.