Time for AL-led govt to make a course correction
AS THE Awami League-led government enters into the third year of its
tenure today, an assessment of its policies and performances over the
past two years, in light of its pre-election promises, may be in
order. It is imperative, however, to first revisit the context, in
which the Sheikh Hasina administration came to power. The electoral
landslide of the AL-led political alliance may have been due to, among
other things, its pre-election promises which more or less
encapsulated the aspiration of the people, who, needless to say, were
then eager to see the back of the illegal, unconstitutional and
repressive interim government, whose many misadventures during its
two-year tenure had literally left the people gasping for breath.
The quasi-military administration set back the political process,
induced a climate of fear across society, weakened the key
institutions of the state, brought the economy to its knees, allowed
the prices of essential commodities spiral way of the ordinary
people's reach, so on and so forth. Most importantly, the regime,
which is believed to have been propelled to power with significant
help from the Dhaka-based diplomatic community, let certain countries
including one of our closest neighbours intervene in the country's
sovereignty—political, economic and otherwise. As such, the Awami
League's promise for 'maintenance of economic stability and control
over commodity price hike', 'effective action against corruption', 'a
comprehensive long-term policy on electricity and energy',
'elimination of poverty and equity', etc resonated well with the
people. The master stroke, so to speak, was the promise that 'courtesy
and tolerance will be inculcated in the political culture', the
absence of which, the people generally believe, had led to
confrontation between the two major political camps and ultimately to
the January 11, 2007 changeover.
However, in the past two years, the AL-led government has hardly
appeared committed to keeping the promises. Very early in its tenure,
the ruling party's student front, the Bangladesh Chhatra League, began
what may be called a cleansing operation, driving its political
opponents, especially Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, the student wing of
the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party, out of the campuses
of leading public universities and colleges across the country. Soon,
the youth front of the Awami League, the Bangladesh Juba League,
joined in the act, establishing control over bus and launch terminals,
marketplaces, etc.
Meanwhile, the opposition lawmakers were harried inside parliament,
with the treasury benchers resorting to a campaign of denigration and
demonisation of their leaders, dead or alive. The resultant acrimony
prompted the opposition into prolonged boycott of parliament, which
continues till date, and deciding to mobilise public opinion through
political programmes. Here, too, the government and the ruling party
have intervened, making sure, through legal and extra-legal means,
that the political space for the opposition parties is constricted as
much as possible.
Moreover, the government seems to have taken politicisation of the
civil administration to a new height, rewarding its loyalists, proven
or perceived, and punishing those not loyal or adequately loyal to it.
Key functionaries of the government and the ruling party have not even
made any attempt to sugar-coat their intentions, with the deputy
leader of the House public urging the prime minister to cleanse the
bureaucracy of pro-opposition elements and the health adviser to the
prime minister announcing that only people belonging to the party
would be appointed to the community health clinics that the government
has decided to revive.
Issues that have direct consequence for the people at large have been
largely ignored in the meantime. The prices of essential commodities
continue to climb upward, law and order keeps deteriorating, members
of the Rapid Action Battalion and other law enforcement agencies carry
on with extrajudicial killings, power generation and distribution
scenario gets bleaker every day, investment, domestic and foreign, in
the productive sector remains low, employment market sees little sign
of improvement—the list could go on and on.
What has been perhaps most disappointing—and dangerous, too—is the
government's readiness, if not eagerness, let outsiders dictate its
policies and actions. The recent leak of US diplomatic cables by the
WikiLeaks, which reveal instances of brazen intervention by
Washington, London and New Delhi in the government's policy decisions
and actions, bears a poignant testimony to this effect.
In a nutshell, the government has thus far belied the people's hopes
and aspirations, and breached the trust they have reposed in it. Such
a breach of trust could very well prompt the people to become
politics-averse, which may eventually compromise the political
process. Hence, the government needs to make a course correction and
focus on keeping the promises it made to the people and meeting its
constitutional obligation. After all, the cost of its failure could be
devastating for the country, the people and the political process.
http://newagebd.com/newspaper1/editorial/3965.html
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