AL to focus on dev, BNP on democracy
In their manifestos for the next national polls, the Awami League wants to focus on the government's "success stories" while the BNP on its “goal to restore democracy", insiders say.
A sub-committee of the AL is now working in full swing to complete a draft of the manifesto following directives of party chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to two of its senior leaders.
The BNP also has assigned a group of experts to draft its manifesto though the party has yet to formally announce if it will contest the upcoming polls, said sources.
In the draft, the AL sub-committee is highlighting major development projects the government has implemented since 2009. The manifesto will list some ongoing mega projects to persuade people to vote for the party again for “continuation of development”.
Considering the number of young voters, the party seeks to target them with some slogans like "Power of the Youth is the Prosperity of Bangladesh" and "New Bangladesh for the Young Generation", said the AL sources.
The AL high-ups think around 70 percent of voters are aged 35 or below. And more than two crore new names have been added to the voter list since the 2008 general election, party sources say.
The leaders believe young voters will play a significant role in determining the outcome of the 11th parliamentary election.
"We are working to prepare the electoral manifesto focusing on the government's successes and targeting the young generation," Dr Abdur Razzak, chairman of the sub-committee tasked with drafting the manifesto, told The Daily Star yesterday.
“The drafting is now at the last stage and it will be completed by this month. We will then submit it to the party chief," said Razzak, also a presidium member of the AL.
In the manifesto, party insiders say, the AL may also highlight issues like employment generation, sustainable development, poverty reduction, food safety and growth of IT sector.
In the run up to the 2008 polls, the AL manifesto titled "Charter for Change" was widely discussed. The grand alliance led by the party won a landslide in that election.
For the 2014 election, the AL unveiled the manifesto with the slogan “Peace, Democracy, Development and Progress -- Bangladesh Moves Forward.” The election took place amid boycotts by the BNP-led alliance and some other parties.
On the other hand, the BNP wants to mobilise voters in its favour focusing on constitutional reforms to bring checks and balances and “restoration of democracy”, according to party sources.
Senior leaders say the manifesto is being drafted based on the Vision-2030 unveiled by BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia in 2016 and the 12-point goal the party presented at the September 30 rally in the capital.
In the Vision-2030, the party said if voted to power, it will ensure a balance of power by curbing the power of the prime minister through constitutional amendments.
It also spoke for a massive devolution of power in all strata of government to ensure good governance by outlining a framework on duties and responsibilities of the local government institutions.
The party's 12-point goal includes establishing good governance, rule of law and checks and balances, modernising armed forces, and freeing the Anti-Corruption Commission of political influence and making it effective.
Contacted, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said the party has yet to decide if it will join the polls.
“If we contest the election, our electoral manifesto will be prepared based on the Vision-2030 and 12-point goal," he told The Daily Star yesterday.
The Jatiya Oikyafront, the recently formed alliance of the BNP and several other parties, has yet to begin work on its electoral manifesto.
However, the 11-point goal it unveiled on the day of its launching on October 13 is almost similar to the 12-point goal of the BNP.
"If we contest the polls under the banner of Oikyafront, we will certainly come up with an election manifesto," Mahmudur Rahman Manna, convenor of Nagorik Oikya, a component of the Oikyafront, told this newspaper yesterday.
"We already have publicly said what we want to achieve if we are voted to power," he said, referring to their 11-point goal.
In the run up to the 2008 parliamentary polls, the BNP unveiled a manifesto with the slogan "Save the Country, Save the People."
The party, however, faced an election debacle bagging only 32 parliamentary seats, the lowest in its history.
The Jatiya Party, main opposition in parliament, may also focus on good governance in its election manifesto as hinted by its chief HM Ershad by announcing 18-point goal from Saturday's rally.
The goals include depoliticisation of administration and judiciary, enactment of laws to curb corruption, tender manipulation and extortion, and reforms in the electoral system.
"The goals announced by the party chief are sort of our election manifesto. We will turn those into the manifesto," a senior JP leader told The Daily Star yesterday.
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