Dhaka, Bangladesh--The military-backed interim government in Bangladesh is gradually proceeding with its ultimate plan of planting non-political people as ‘people’s representative’ in order to attain the goal of ultimately depolitizing the country.
Contrary to the Election Commission’s roadmap, local government adviser Anwarul Iqbal recently announced a timeline for holding elections to the local government bodies. The advisor said that the elections to four city corporations and seven municipalities would be held in April, while polls to 100 upazila parishads [sub district councils] would take place in May this year.
It may be mentioned here that, according to the ‘roadmap’ announced by the Election Commission, elections to upazila parishads [sub district councils] are to start in October while the balloting for the city corporations, municipalities and union parishads [village council] would be held sometime before December this year. The adviser’s announcement came in contradiction with the government’s recent decision to empower the commission to determine the timeline for elections to the local government bodies.
The advisor, while making this announcement of local government election, also said that none of the members or affiliates of any of the existing political parties will be able to become a candidate in any of the local government elections.
Responding to such announcement by the local government advisor to the present interim government, the Chief Election Commissioner [CEC] ATM Shamsul Huda said he does not know anything about the plans for upazila elections in May as announced by the advisor.
"I know nothing about it. You better ask the one who's made the announcement," an apparently irritated Huda told reporters after a meeting of the Election Commission [EC].
It may be recalled here that the mainstream political parties have in a chorus demanded that parliamentary elections be held before local government elections. They are apt to say that is what the caretaker government and the EC are mandated for. Besides, they add, it might 'complicate' the preparations for national elections, apart from the fact that the results of the local government polls, although held on a non-party basis, could influence the outcome of the parliamentary elections.
The interim government and the Election Commission have repeatedly promised to hold the next general election by December 2008. Development partners and the international community have welcomed such moves of the government and are putting highest emphasis on this issue.
India has pressed Bangladesh's military-backed government to honor its promise to hold free and fair elections by the end of this year, joining the international chorus for early restoration of democracy in the emergency-ruled country.
"India wanted Bangladesh to return to democracy through free and fair elections according to the electoral roadmap," Indian High Commissioner Pinak Ranjan Chakravarti said.
Bangladesh's Election Commission had announced that it wanted to hold a general election in the country, which was put off in January last year following imposition of a state emergency, by the end of 2008. The head of the interim government, Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed and the army chief, Moeen U Ahmed have voiced their support for the roadmap a number of times.
"The caretaker government has an ambitious agenda [for holding the elections] and has done a lot of great jobs," the US charge d' affaires Geeta Pasi said recently.
While visibly the EC is moving ahead with its roadmap in holding the next general election according to its blueprint, there is a growing speculations in the minds of various think tanks in Bangladesh that, once the election is held, this country will also witness the similar ‘come back’ of former political parties in power either directly or indirectly, which had been seriously affected during the anti-corruption drive of the present interim government.
Although there were some attempts by minor politicians or some former military officials in forming political parties during the State of Emergency, it is by now absolutely understood by all quarters that these newly born parties shall have in fact no significant role in any of the elections in the country. It will be absolutely difficult for them in even bagging a couple of seats in the national election as neither the forefront leaders nor the others of such parties have any acceptability to the voters in Bangladesh.
So, once the election is held in Bangladesh mainstream political parties will regain power, which may not be either expected or a cause of delight for the present interim government or its driving force. Everyone understands that once the mainstream politicians get back into the driving seat of country’s administration, most of the actions and initiatives of the current interim government will get questioned and it is even likely that the entire situations of past January 11, 2007 might become a boomerang for the members of the interim government. And, of course, such realities are not unknown to either Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed or anyone else.
Considering this fact, possibly the present interim government is considering somehow delaying the whole electoral process as well as seeing the scope of even changing the form of government in the country. In that case, Bangladesh may witness a return to Presidential form of government from the present one. In that case, the fate and future of democracy shall complete depend on two major questions.
Who will be the next president of the country and what type of political and economic charisma does he hold in his pocket to give confidence in the minds of the people?
Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury is the editor & publisher of The Weekly Blitz. He is a journalist, columnist, author and Peace activist. He is the recipient of PEN USA Freedom to Write Award 2005, Recipient of American Jewish Committee Moral Courage Award 2006.
Salah can be reached at: salahuddinshoaibchoudhury@yahoo.com
