EC, govt, parties to blame for current situation
The 12th parliamentary polls are not going to be inclusive and peaceful in accordance with the South Asian standards, says former cabinet secretary Ali Imam Mazumder.
"I am little frustrated. We had high hopes for this election especially because we didn't see any good election after 2008. We expected that this election would be participatory or inclusive, peaceful, and acceptable as per the South Asian standards. But this is not happening unfortunately," he told The Daily Star in an exclusive interview.
He held the Election Commission, the government as well as some political parties, including the BNP, responsible for the current situation in the country.
"As the umpire of the polls, the Election Commission failed to create a level playing field for all political parties. The government also could have played a key role in this regard, but it didn't take any visible steps to create a conducive environment.
"Additionally, those who are boycotting the election, especially the BNP, had been rigid on polls under a caretaker government."
In politics, there is no such fixed formula, said Ali Imam.
Had the BNP run this time, it would have been good for the party, he observed.
The former bureaucrat thinks that the BNP lost its political strength by not participating in the 2014 polls.
"If the BNP had run in 2014, it would have won more seats in 2018 to have become the main opposition party in parliament."
He said the most of the opposition parties had participated in polls during the Pakistan period despite knowing they would lose.
"The Awami League also followed the same strategy during the military regime in Bangladesh. This strategy helps political parties to keep themselves energised. As an observer, I think it is a good strategy."
According to Ali Imam, if the October 28 violence had not happened in Dhaka, the international community might have tried to bring the BNP to the electoral race, and the government might have agreed to a compromise.
However, after the October 28 incident, the scope for the BNP's participation evaporated, he added.
The former cabinet secretary said like many national and international platforms, he also thinks that the BNP's October 28 rally was foiled to keep the party away from polls.
Talking about the importance of participatory polls, Ali Imam said when a key political party pulls out, the choices for the voters are reduced.
"Most of the MP aspirants are from the Awami League and independents. A few seats will see contests between the Awami League candidates and independents, but the figure would be less than 100," he said.
According to him, the overall competition will be between "the AL vs the AL".
"This time I didn't find any reason to be curious about the polls or taking any interest in going to the polling centre as we can certainly say the ruling party will form the next government, and the incumbent prime minister will continue in office… Maybe there will be some changes in the next cabinet," the retired bureaucrat said.
In a few constituencies, voters will go to polling centres where the battles of ballots would be close, but it would not impact the overall polls environment nationally, he said.
"We hope candidates will be elected through tough competitions in all 300 constituencies."
He said for sustainable development, a party needs to continue in power for a long period as it was seen during Jawaharlal Nehru's rule in India, but this should happen through fair elections.
"The main basis of our Liberation War was the historical six points. The first point was to form a parliament through voting. When voters don't see competitive elections, they don't feel interested in casting ballots. Such elections would not be considered acceptable at home and abroad."
Ali Imam said although there is nothing to be hopeful about in domestic politics, politicians should find an acceptable solution to the political crisis through meaningful talks.
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