THE government has already dismissed almost half of the elected representatives of local government bodies apparently acting on political consideration. Local government bodies are becoming ruling party institutions instead of local government inclusively voted by the people. The government empowered by Local Government Act 2009, has so far fired popularly elected mayors of Gazipur, Sylhet and Rajshahi City Corporations, besides many upazila chairmen, vice chairmen and ward councillors elected on opposition backing. They have been shown accused of violence in the recent pro-democracy agitation against the government and were temporarily relieved of their duty. The dismissal and the follow-up demoralization are running so high at each level floating suspicion on the future of local government system in Bangladesh. It appears strange, while experts call for strengthening of the local bodies like Union Parishad and Upazila Parishad; the government is taking the system backward by removing their elected representatives and replacing with people of its own choice. If the situation continues the historical local government institutions would be on the brink soon.
A vernacular daily reported that the government has no popular support and the vote rigging in the last Parliament election and in the second phase of Upazila elections in 2014 and the also in recent City elections has made the government’s intention about the local government doubtful. The ruling party is using the Election Commission, police and the administration to cling on power but it is not at peace either; because it knows that people don’t trust them and they are becoming intolerant to the people it believes to be supportive to the opposition.
Report said the government suspended more than 50 pro-BNP-Jamaat chairmen of different upazilas. Almost the same number of vice-chairmen has been removed so far. The elected leaders of the local people are reportedly victimized by politics of vendetta as several hundred cases have been lodged against them to justify their removal and keep them on the run. Other chairmen and vice-chairmen elected with opposition backing are also on the run when the Ministry of Local Government is at work to remove them from their posts.
Noticeably, when the government has removed the city mayors of Sylhet, Rajshahi, Barisal and Gazipur, it won election of three party backed mayors of Dhaka and Chittagong city using all electoral frauds. Moreover, the three mayors are going to get ministerial status while the removed mayors were denied of their state minister’s status for being the opposition backed mayors. There is a growing apprehension that such partisan outlook and discriminatory policies to run the local government is going to destroy the local bodies, after almost silencing the opposition political parties in local politics. The mingling of local bodies with ruling party politics is not a good sign. The policy must end to save people’s representation at the local government institutions.
