Kathmandu, June 17

Chief Election Commissioner Ayodhi Prasad Yadav today appealed to candidates of political parties and independent candidates to take part in the candidates’ nomination process scheduled for tomorrow.

Addressing a press conference today, CEC Yadav urged all stakeholders to complete the nomination process peacefully. Yadav assured that the local elections in provinces 1, 5 and 7 would be held on the stipulated date - June 28. He further said the EC had completed all preparations.

“We hope political parties and candidates will fully respect the sovereign rights of voters to elect their desired candidates during the second phase of elections,” Yadav said. He added that the EC was confident security personnel deployed for elections would discourage activities aimed at stoking the sensitivity of the situation and obstructing the election process from candidacy nomination filing to vote counting and that theywould maintain law and order.

The EC is   fully confident of security arrangements for all, including officials and staffers of the commission, the staffers deployed for elections, electoral materials, management of material transportation, polling locations, voters, offices of political parties and candidates.

Yadav hoped the government would make security arrangements for elections effective and election-friendly.

The EC has made all arrangements to conduct direct monitoring of some sensitive polling stations from its headquarters with modern technology.

The chief returning officers and returning officers have been directed to make all logistic arrangements to facilitate candidates to file nominations, and voters to cast their votes in a safe atmosphere.

Yadav said the EC had enforced the election code of conduct and formed mechanisms at different levels to monitor code of conduct violations. Yadav further said the EC had been running the voter education drive extensively. At least, one voter educator has been deployed at one polling centre and altogether 8,350 voter educators with all required materials have been deputed for elections.

The EC is preparing for inspection by representatives of diplomatic missions at polling stations only in Biratnagar and Dhankuta of Province 1, Bhairahawa and Palpa of Province 5 and Dhangadi and Dadheldhura of Province 7 on June 28.

Yadav said the political parties had taken the compulsory provision of fielding 50 per cent women candidates for the post of mayor and deputy mayor in the municipality and chief and deputy chief in rural municipality very positively. At the ward level as well, 50 per cent women representation has been guaranteed.

The second phase of local polls will be held only in 334 local levels of 35 districts in provinces 1, 5 and 7. Polls will be held in one metropolitan city, seven sub-metropolitan cities,  111 municipalities and 215 rural municipalities. There are  6,432,765 eligible voters. The June 28 election will elect  a total of 15,028 representatives. There are  8,364 polling centres and  4,581 polling locations.

A total of   66,900 staffers, apart from security personnel, will be deployed. Aspiring candidates can file their candidacies at the offices of the chief returning officers and returning officers tomorrow between 8:00am and 4:00pm.