Pauline Njoroge among 10 picked by Commonwealth to observe Bangladesh elections

Digital strategist Pauline Njoroge has been picked as part of a 10-member Commonwealth Expert Team (CET) set to observe the Bangladesh elections on Sunday.

The Commonwealth, in a notice dated December 27, 2023, listed Ms. Njoroge as the only Kenyan with nine other members from across its member States worldwide.

The team was picked by Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland and will be led by former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding.

“The team’s deployment demonstrates the Commonwealth’s continued commitment to supporting electoral democracy in our 56 member countries and safeguarding the rights of the people of Bangladesh as they take part in these pivotal elections," stated Ms. Scotland after appointing the group.

CET Chairman Mr. Golding, on his part, stated: “I am pleased to be collaborating with this expert team which, as is customary, includes experts from diverse backgrounds, countries and professions. In conducting our duties in Bangladesh, we pledge to remain objective, transparent and independent.”

Njoroge, a longtime ally of former President Uhuru Kenyatta, is a renowned media personality and is also a communication expert for various organisations.

Besides Mr. Golding and Ms. Njoroge, the rest of the expert team members on the observer mission are;

• Dr. Samuel Azu’u Fonkam, former Chairman, Elections (Cameroon)
• Sabyasachi Banerjee, Advocate and Special Public Prosecutor, Calcutta High Court (India)
• Jeffrey Salim Waheed, former Deputy Foreign Minister (Maldives)
• Prof. Attahiru Jega, former Chairman, Independent National Electoral Commission (Nigeria)
• Hennah Joku, media specialist (Papua New Guinea)
• Prof. Dinesha Samararatne, Professor, Department of Public & International Law, Faculty of Law, University of Colombo and Member of Constitutional Council of Sri Lanka
• Terry Dale Ince, gender and human rights advocate, organizational development consultant and Founder of CEDAW Committee of Trinidad and Tobago
• Mark Stephens, Partner, Howard Kennedy LLP and Member of Commonwealth Lawyers Association (United Kingdom)

The CET is expected to meet various stakeholders, including political parties, police, civil society groups, citizen observer and monitor groups, as well as representatives from the media.  

They will be assisted by staff members from the Commonwealth Secretariat in their goal to ensure all aspects of the election process are adhered to and the process is conducted in line with the democratic standards to which Bangladesh has committed itself. 

The election slated for Sunday will see the Asian nation of 170 million people cast its vote in a poll the rights groups say may threaten the democracy of the country.

Sheikh Hasina, the current Prime Minister and chair of the Awami Party, is likely to be reelected as the country’s leader for a fourth consecutive term.

Hasina has been in power since 2009 and won the last election in December 2019, in a poll marred in deadly violence and accusations of poll rigging.

Her opponent Khaleda Zia, a former prime minister and chief of the main opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), had been jailed the year before on corruption charges.

Zia, 78, now lives under house arrest and her BNP continues to face mounting challenges by Hasina and her ruling dispensation with the mass arrest of its politicians.

The situation has led to protests, and the BNP has decided to boycott the election again, paving the way for Hasina once more.

Additional information by CNN.