BGMEA polls: Vote counting underway, results to be announced shortly

The voting of biennial election of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) was closed at 5:00pm.

The election began at 10:00am today. Vote counting commenced at around 6:00pm, said Jahangir Alamin, chairman of the BGMEA election board for the 2024-26 term.

Sources at the Dhaka centre said 1,839 out of 2,032 votes were cast. 

Whereas, at the Chattogram polling centre, 387 out of 462 votes were cast.

It may take two to three hours to finish counting the votes electronically, said Alamin.

The election was conducted peacefully, and no untoward incident took place, he added. 

A couple of hours into balloting, the BGMEA election board chairman expressed satisfaction, stating that the election is being held peacefully in Dhaka and Chattogram with cooperation from both panels.

During the voting, each voter was required to mark a "cross" on the ballot paper to elect 35 directors. 

In the Dhaka region, voters cast their ballots at booths set up at the BGMEA Uttara office, while the voters in the Chattogram region participate in the polls at the trade body's regional office in the port city.

Some 2,496 members of the apex trade body of the apparel sector will vote to elect a new board of directors for the 2024-2025 term. 

A total of 70 candidates are contesting for 35 director positions under two panels –Sammilito Parishad and Forum. Of the 35 directors, 26 will be picked up from Dhaka, while nine will be elected from Chattogram region. 

SM Mannan Kochi is contesting for the president post from the Sammilito Parishad, a panel backed by Faruque Hassan, the outgoing president, while Faisal Samad is the candidate of Forum, backed by former president Rubana Huq, for the post. 

On 4 December last year, the BGMEA board of directors formed a three-member election board headed by Jahangir Alamin, former president of the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA). 

It also formed a three-member election appellate board headed by Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) President Kamran T Rahman.

In a letter, BGMEA president Faruque Hassan has urged all the members to remain united for a better future of the RMG industry. 

The last polls were held on 4 April 2021, with 1,996 out of 2,314 voters casting their ballots to elect the directors, while office bearers were elected on 12 April. 

The current board's tenure was supposed to end on 12 April last year, but the government extended it by one year in two phases. 

On 13 April, the Ministry of Commerce first extended the tenure by six months to 12 October in response to the plea of the present committee. Then, the extension was made for another six months up to 12 April this year.