Full steam ahead

At this stage in the proceedings, there is broad agreement between the major political parties and alliances and the EC on all major issues, and, as such, there should be no bar to the holding of parliamentary elections participated in by all parties on December 29 as scheduled.
With respect to the outstanding issue of emergency being lifted prior to the polls, it seems to us that this is a consensus demand, not only of the two main parties but also of the people in general. Indeed, we have seen no great objection on the part of either the CG or the EC to the lifting of emergency prior to the polls, either.
All that is left, it appears, is the exact timing of withdrawal to be announced, and seeing as most parties have no objection to emergency being lifted after the last date for withdrawal of nominations, which we are given to understand is what the CG has in mind, then this should be a simple matter to resolve.
However, with respect to the demand of the BNP regarding Section 91(e) of the amended RPO, we feel that the weight of logic lies on the side of the EC. It has explained in painstaking detail how the clause cannot be invoked in an arbitrary or capricious manner, but requires a hearing before a magistrate, thorough investigation, and can be appealed in the HC. Thus, it seems to us, that sufficient safeguards are in place to allay BNP misgivings about its potential for abuse.
We should add that the situation pertaining in the past was wholly inadequate, since the election tribunals got enmeshed in long drawn-out proceedings and delivered verdicts well into the tenure of the person elected, sometimes even after it was completed, rendering them ineffectual as deterrence. Surely the necessity to ensure that candidates abide by elections laws and the code of conduct must be the paramount consideration.
Similarly, with respect to the AL's position on upazila elections, we again fail to see why this should be such a contentious issue. We can understand the point about shifting the upazila election nomination schedule in order to pay undivided attention to national polls, but the current schedule may be advantageous to the parties in that it might provide space for frustrated nomination aspirants for parliament to seek a seat at the local level. In any event, the EC has declared that there is no scope for any change.
In short, we feel that the time has come for the parties to put this matter to rest and affirm that they will go to the polls as scheduled. We feel that all reasonable demands of the parties have been met and all fundamentals are in place for fully participatory elections. When we are so close let us not be derailed by last minute tinkering on any issue. The people have waited too long already.