THE common refrain these days on everyone's lips is, what does the CTG have to show for the twenty months that it has been in charge of the affairs of the state? The common feeling is that we are perhaps back to square one -- with the only disturbing reality that we do not even have a square peg to fill the square slot.
If people feel that the last twenty months have been wasted in pointless exercises, with cosmetic touches here and there to give the impression that there was no lack of effort on the part of the government, they can hardly be blamed for feeling let down. The redeeming feature, though, is the completion of the voter list and national identity card.
Regrettably, there has not been anything tangible that the people can feel hopeful about, at least insofar as political reform and fight against corruption is concerned. And that is perhaps because there were too many cooks with not only too many recipes, but too many untried methods of cooking. And the perfectionists would say effort doesn't transform into work unless there is output.
I feel we have wasted our efforts because of too many ideas but without really a good prescription for how best to put those into effect. Unfortunately too, some of the ideas were ill-conceived, destined to come up short in delivering the desired results.
However, what must be made clear is that, notwithstanding all the acts that have been played out in the political stage in the last year and a half, particularly in the last one month, and the apparent "deals" and "counter-deals" made to get "everyone to participate in the election," the demand of the people for political reform and for good election contested by good candidates, remains as relevant as before.
Notwithstanding the resistance from some parties against the newly promulgated RPO, people will not countenance any dilution of those provisions that can ensure a fair election in which only the clean candidates should stand a chance of being elected.
The government started with a bang and is very likely to end with less than a whimper. But why did the situation come to such a pass? There were very compelling reasons for the changes of January 11. And the people in one voice, except for some inveterate supporters of the alliance government, wanted changes in our political culture.
The disconcerting aspect, but which we all must accept as a reality, is that our political culture is not about to change soon. One can bring in any number of provisions in the RPO and all the rules and regulations; the truth is that political culture is a matter of attitude, which is shaped by the mind. And like any other aspects of culture, if the political ethos has to change then the mindset will have to change too, beginning with the politicians', which, hopefully, would trickle down to the party workers.
But that is a tall ask -- just imagine the violence that we witnessed after the news of Tarique Rahman's injury. Helpless passersby and vehicles were set upon, and one unfortunate person was killed. And this has happened when there is Emergency in the country!
Political reform is a two-way traffic. Both the EC and the political parties need to act in their own ways to see this comes about. If the EC's efforts to transform the nature of politics in the country have conveyed the impression to the politicians that the changes are meant to usher in the practice of "command democracy" then the lack of effort on their part has given us the impression that political reform is not in their list of priorities.
Democratisation of political parties received a rude shock when some genuflecting BNP standing committee members decided to make Khaleda Zia lifelong chairperson of the party. The dissenting persons, surely there must have been a few in that group, could not pluck enough courage to say that it was a very bad idea -- that it was out-and-out an anti-democratic step.
At least Begum Zia had the good sense to realise, though belatedly, the stupidity of the suggestion and "declined" to accept the post for life. It seems that nothing has changed for some of the politicians.
The anti-corruption drive did shake up the nation initially. One understands that this is a continuous process, and no one is so naïve as to think that we can get rid of something that is embedded in our blood in a matter of months. Though a few big fry have been convicted, it appears that the ACC's effort has stumbled.
One feels that the ACC has been hard done by, by two things. Firstly, the anti-corruption drive should not have been guided by political motive -- it was an ill-advised act. Most of those arrested for alleged corruption are politicians, and very few have had any substantive charges brought against them in all these months.
One would have thought that a year and a half would have been enough to either prove or disprove the prima-facie against the accused. And the legal process varied from case to case -- show me the man and I will show you the law -- was what has been practiced in certain cases. Secondly, the Truth and Accountability Commission is a setback for the drive against corruption. While one cannot quite comprehend its TOR, one wonders whether it will be able to deliver either.
And in all the legal wrangling, particularly those related to the bail of the two leaders and some high profile accused, the image of the judiciary and the character of the legal process have been unnecessary tainted by very injudicious remarks, among other things, regarding the matter of bail, by one of the advisors to the caretaker government.
The talk of the town currently is the parley between Hasina and Khaleda. One feels that there is no need for the governmnet to spend time on this. Yes, as leaders of the two major parties they must meet and break the ice that exists between them, but it would be wrong to give the impression that the future course of politics is depenedent soley on the two leaders sitting down for talks.
In the final analysis, the two major parties should take the lead in removing the obstacles towards political reform, and the process would require a flexible EC too. It is entirely up to the political parties to effect changes in their party constitution. Also the onus is on the parties to select good candidates, let quality and nothing else be the sole criterian.
While we wait eagerly for the parlimantary election, without ensuring these preconditions the aspiration of the people would remain unfulfilled, and it will again be business as usual, back to the pre 1/11 days, at least insofar as politics is concerened. That is a horible thought to entertain.

The author is Editor, Defence & Strategic Affairs, The Daily Star.