Election Commission reveals obstacles in holding Aug 5th General Elections

The National Election Commission says it is determined to hold the General Election on 05 August 2020, but it must be ensured that the election is not a key factor for the resurgence of COVID-19 in the country.

Chairman of the Commission Mahinda Deshapriya said, however, the delay in gazetting the health guidelines issued on COVID-19 to be followed during the election is a major obstacle to holding the polls.

Deshapriya said during the Commission’s meeting yesterday it was decided to re-appeal to the health authorities to gazette the health guidelines issued on COVID-19 pertaining to the election.

Pointing out the incident that occurred in the Agriculture Sector Office in the North-Western Province, where health guidelines were ignored during postal voting, Deshapriya said it was essential to gazette the guidelines in order to make it legally binding.

Admonishing the public officials who had disregarded the health guidelines during postal voting, he said it is unrealistic to expect the public to adhere to the guidelines when public officials disregard them.

Public Health Inspectors (PHI) who were part of the discussion yesterday are willing to assist in election-related functions but are hesitant due to the delay in gazetting the health guidelines on COVID-19, he further said.

Deshapriya said PHI officers engaged in routine checks to monitor if health guidelines are being adhered to during election campaigns have faced practical challenges as organizers have questioned the legality of their inquiries.

The Election Commission is also considering having mobile polling booths for those who have been placed in self-isolation, in a bid to prevent them from arriving at polling booths on election day and causing a COVID-19 outbreak, he said.

Mahinda Deshapriya added that the Commission is set to meet again on 21 July to review the current situation in the country. (Newswire)

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