State Minister for Local Government Mir Shahe Alam has said the Election Commission (EC) will decide whether MPO-listed teachers can contest local government elections.He made the remarks at the Secretariat in Dhaka on Sunday afternoon, adding that there is no educational qualification requirement for candidates in local government elections.However, on July 21, EC Senior Secretary Akhter Ahmed said MPO-listed teachers would not be eligible to contest the elections. He also said loan defaulters and guarantors would be disqualified from contesting, while candidates with outstanding utility bills would also be considered ineligible. The EC secretary said discussions had been held on the laws governing five local government bodies: union parishads, upazila parishads, municipalities, city corporations and district councils.