With missionary zeal they organise "hartals," "oborodhs," processions and rallies etc. at regular intervals -- despite their pre-election promises to not to do so. Interestingly, the modus operandi of all the major parties are identical. Although many of us envy their perks and privileges, wheeling and dealing, and the phenomenal accumulation of wealth, we fail to appreciate the hazardous nature of their profession.

Many of us tend to envy their Hummers and Pajeros, but without appreciating their talent and enterprise in accumulating wealth at meteoric speed. Their professional hazards include periodic beatings by law enforcing agents, necessitating occasional treatment overseas.

However unfortunate and undesirable these beatings are, it may be noted that some members of the law enforcing agencies manifested their impeccable impartiality by the fact that, given the opportunity, their kicks do not discriminate in respect of political affiliation, status or gender.

In every profession there is a rest and recreation break. The academics are a privileged class of people who enjoy sabbatical leave after every few years. During this refreshing paid break the academics are generally free to pursue their interests, not tied down by routine activities, when they can plan and fine-tune the future direction of their research. I still cherish the memory of my last sabbatical break at the beautiful university town of Madison in the state of Wisconsin.

Our politicians are currently having a good break after fifteen years or more of continuous service to the nation. Of course, since the onset of emergency, things have gone sour for some as they have become the guests of the state.

But, with division status, things may not be as bad as they are with the normal criminals. The detractors, however, may point to the fact that, unlike the academics, theirs will not be a paid vacation. But who in their right mind would worry about the puny salary they are deprived of, compared to their total earning.

The dramatic developments in the political arena gives the stakeholders of the nation an opportunity to pause and reflect on the new direction they have to move in. To that end, the parties concerned may consider the following:

The established political parties

• The established political parties should realise that nature does not accept extremes of anything -- e.g. the pendulum swings back when it reaches one extreme end, and similarly a river changes course when it erodes too much on one side. Let them ponder as to why people of every walk were so happy when the yoke of democracy (rather kleptocracy), that is so cherished and valued under normal circumstances, was removed.
• They ought to carry out reforms in the way their parties are run. It is ludicrous that autocratic leaders should be running so-called democratic parties just because the party mantle had been handed to the incumbents through inheritance or other dubious processes. The leaders ought to realise that they do not have the birthright to impose dynastic rule on the nation.
• Let them come out with manifestos with do-able programs, rather than lofty promises which they neither want to, nor are able to, carry out.
• Let them not get impatient to get back power. Their time in the sun may come in due course, but in the meantime let them take an overdue R & R (rest and recreation) break and search their souls (if there are any) to explore as to why the democratic-minded population of Bangladesh is celebrating the emergence of this particular caretaker government.
• In every setback in life some windows of opportunity appear so instead of ruminating let the political parties concerned carry out post mortem to reappraise their past deeds and chalk out programs for future actions.

The caretaker government (CTG)

• The majority of the population heaved a sigh of relief at the recent turn of events. Despite the fact that the Bangladeshis are very democratic minded they welcomed an unelected government, and they don't want them to leave the job half done. With bated breath the people are watching the sweeping away of the debris of the past mal- governance and corrupt practices. As of now, the nation appears to be fully behind the CTG, so it ought to carry on the cleansing operation with gusto. Such an opportunity does not come too often.
• We hope that this government will not hesitate to take unpopular but desirable decisions, which political parties are hesitant/unwilling to take. One such urgent decision is to make Sunday the weekly holiday.
• Hopefully the CTG will not yield to the pressure of the political parties (and even a particular section of population) to have an early election. Let the Augean stable be cleared first. The corrupt persons have to be removed from the political scene through comprehensive purges, once and for all.
• One of the most laudable initiatives is to get the Chittagong port and airport to run more efficiently. Getting a privatized terminal would be a very timely and welcome achievement.
• There is a need to investigate the excesses of the CBAs in most nationalised entities. The touts who caused immense harm must be eliminated from the CBAs.
• It is strongly recommended to go for national identity card rather than a voter ID. It may take longer, but it will have lasting benefits.
• If other reforms, like land reforms etc., could be initiated, that would be a feather in their cap.

The silent majority
The people have suffered a lot and they should bear with temporary inconvenience, if any, for better future. With good governance double-digit growth is reachable that will see economic benefit reaching the poorer segment of the population.

The people must not be deceived by the shrill cacophony of the politicians to restore democracy soonest. The democracy has to come back but there is no need to rush. In the mean time let the politicians cool their heels to reassess as to how they can help and not rob people of their right.

New political party
Due to the miserable performance of the established parties, there is a yearning for new political entities. Against this backdrop, the possible emergence of "Nagorik Shakti" is a welcome development. We welcome Nobel Laureate Dr. Yunus to the political firmament of Bangladesh, and wish that he can contribute to national development through politics as well as he did through his "Grameen bank" efforts.

Although his eminence and past achievements do not guarantee immediate success in politics, we hope that his emergence will change the way the political game is played in this country. We hope that he develops a thick skin, because of the brickbats being pelted at him by the political parties.

Let him have the stamina, patience and steadfastness to achieve his goals. The minimum fallout from his venture into politics would be the emergence of fair competition in the political arena, and a choice for the population at large

Ahmadul Ameen is a freelance contributor to The Daily Star.