Democracy in action: Awami style
IT appears that BNP has been out-maneuvered by AL. Khaleda Zia looks somewhat forlorn and BNP stands isolated in national politics, largely because of her mindless obduracy on the question of poll time government.
The consequence of these maneuvers is a one-party parliament in multiparty clothes.
The main interest of some of the ruling coalition's smaller members is not ideology but the extraction of benefits and privileges for personal gain from the government. Naturally, the ruling party may think it is a small price worth paying for being able to govern.
Critics called it “cheap, dirty politics.” Of course, we know few saints grace our politics, but abuse of core democratic values cannot be condoned; we must not forget that we live in a globalised world. Most political observers reckon that holding the election on January 5 in a hurried manner was a political ploy.
An unfortunate outcome of this inconclusive election is that it will keep the ruling party busy with all kinds of manipulations in order to survive, and it will have little time for governance. Bizarrely, the ruling party thinks it is all business as usual and is adamant that it will stay in power for the full 5 year term. Perhaps it is determined not to allow jihadists to gain upper hand in our country.
Now the problem is how to weather the immediate political squalls, let alone tackle the rapidly worsening financial situation and sluggish growth. Nobody can glimpse any indication of a political settlement. It is not a lack of resources that threatens our progress, but our poisonous politics. Most of our leaders lack political charisma and, once elected, they treat the voters with disdain. It is no surprise that in election after election the public has shown its dissatisfaction by voting out incumbents. They fail to understand that prosperity favours incumbents. Healthy democracy is sine qua non for a nation's material prosperity.
The January 5 election has drawn criticism, and some are questioning whether we are going to compromise with the basic commitments of democracy, that is, free, fair and participatory election. It signaled a cynicism about democratic values.
Evidently, terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda are trying to win friends and influence people in Bangladesh. We wonder what else lurks behind its official sermon. Scaremongers claim that with the rise of small religious parties, the country's electoral geometry is going to be redrawn. In our country, voters' loyalties are on the whole emotional in character, and they adopt positions on issues in an almost random way. Consequently, a tiny change in the popular vote could make big differences to how many seats each party gets. Our intellectual elite have enduring prejudice in favour of liberalism and secularism. Their bias towards a secularised society and greater cultural freedom, and also their relentless efforts to remove the influence of religion from politics, has often been tempered by other considerations.
The educated and urban electorate have cause to be alarmed . They do not want to see al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups looking for people willing to blow themselves up in the name of faith and morals. Unfortunately, our young educated people want to stand away from the political scrimmage. They believe they should not go into politics, while some of our luminaries cannot emerge from the political shadows. It is no wonder that they appear to be mere bystanders in the shifts and trends that define our politics.
Bangladesh is one of the world's most populous Muslim majority nations and its people are overwhelmingly peace-loving, but a small band of radicals is questioning the underpinnings of secular democracy. Chief among them are members of faith-based political parties. They preach that we have lost our way and that the people of this country have forgotten the core of Islam, and the only way for anyone to prove himself a good Muslim is through jihad against nonbelievers. These issues resonate in religious congregations across the country.
In Bangladesh, the influence of the middleclass over the government is far greater than that of the ordinary people's. Building of world class stadiums and staging of T20 world cup cricket games are mostly a middleclass concern. Poor people of this country can't afford the tickets. The poor don't care about free speech and fair election, their only concern is freedom from poverty. Most of our social problems are a product of poverty and inequality. The rights and unfair advantages the rich and powerful enjoy in our society often infuriate the poor, and they wonder why such wonders are beyond their reach.
It's time the ruling party dropped its delusions and got down to work. It should speak candidly and forge a national consensus against corruption and terrorism. I hope our policy makers will realise the realities and change their minds accordingly. I conclude by quoting George Bernard Shaw: "Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything."
The writer is a former investment banker.
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