Many non-AL polling agents struggle to name their candidates

Nearly all polling agents of Dhaka-17 by-poll candidates, other than those of the ruling Awami League candidate, were unable to identify their candidates during the ongoing by-polls.

Many were even unable to describe their functions as polling agents.

Our correspondent found this state of affairs after visiting 12 polling centres at Manarat International School and College, Gulshan Model High School and College, and Banani Model School.

Many polling agents claimed their local "elder brothers" had hired them and asked them to come to the centres to perform the job of polling agents.

Morium, a polling agent at booth 5 in a polling centre at the Banani Model School, initially informed this correspondent that she was unsure who her candidate was.

After a brief pause, she announced that "Mr Labu" is the candidate for whom she is serving as a polling agent.

When our correspondent said there was no candidate named Labu, Morium responded, "Labu bhai has brought me here."

Later, the polling agent for the AL candidate asked Morium to say that she was the polling agent for Sikdar Anisur Rahman of the Jatiya Party.

Even after several attempts, Morium could not tell Anisur's name.

Another polling agent, Moyna, who was manning booth-3 at a different polling centre at the same school, revealed that she was employed by Marzan.

When asked to name the candidate she was working for, Moyna responded that she was unaware of the name.

She merely said, "Marjan bhai has brought me here," declining to elaborate.

Later, a polling agent for the AL candidate gave Moyna a miniature poster of the JP candidate and asked her to identify herself as the JP candidate's polling agent.

Moyna was unable to read the JP candidate's name even after seeing it.

Many other polling agents, like Moyna and Morium, initially struggled to identify the names of the candidates they were working for.

They claimed to be polling agents for the JP candidate or the Jaker Party candidate despite frequently soliciting assistance from polling agents of AL.