Editorial Desk :What is not appreciated is that free election is needed to prove government’s own popularity and legitimacy. The opposition has to prove nothing. Cheating election means cheating people.By all accounts, the present government was sure to be defeated in 5 January election if the process had not been changed altogether to conduct fully under the control of the sitting government. HT Imam, the retired bureaucrat now political adviser to the Prime Minister narrated in enough details how he deserved credit for his part in engineering the election. The scheme to manipulate the election of January 5 began with amending the Constitution unilaterally.The election system was changed rejecting the non-party caretaker government to be in charge for holding the election free from the influence and control of party politics. The all party parliamentary committee also recommended the caretaker government system to continue for this election. Thus election system became a foolproof arrangement for the government to win and continue to remain in power as before. All quarters except the undemocratic ones protested such change as being a sure arrangement for rigging the election by the government in power.According to a report published in a responsible daily the Election Commission is talking of a law to outlaw the opposition if any political party does not take part in the next farcical election. All this only shows how democracy is in the stifling grip of bureaucratic forces. The government is advised to be intolerant of the opposition.What is noticeable is that since the creation of free Bangladesh with the help of India a conspiracy was afoot for politics to be taken over by leftist undemocratic forces against the wishes of the people. The leftist parties existed on paper. Not a single leftist could ever get elected under their own banner. How they became a big influence in power politics of new Bangladesh remains something to be examined seriously. Void in political leadership is surely one.It is for everyone to see that party politics has been criminalized. Politics now means business and corruption. Party politics is controlled by corrupt businessmen and retired bureaucrats. Loyalty to a political party is secured through illicit business and outright corruption. So many others found it easy to be benefited by colluding with the government. Patriotism played no part on them. The whole nation cannot be unpatriotic.But the realization is found even in many corrupt ones that such a situation is leading the country to violent confrontations. It is only a matter time, when. The country cannot have good governance through corruption and a government that is afraid of facing free election.The present government does not hesitate to claim success and popularity. The success for whom? If it is for the people then the government should not be fearful of facing the people in a free election to be held under an election time neutral government. It has been well established that with party government in power, no change of government is possible. Blatant anti-election activities are easily resorted to.The government is found unable even to maintain law and order to offer safety and security of life because of widespread corruption. The RAB, the special police admitted recently that in the killing of seven persons in Narayanganj RAB offices played active part. It is nothing new that law enforcing agencies lack discipline and some of them feel free to abuse power for personal gains. This is bound to happen when the government depends not on people power but on police power. It is admitted that the main opposition party BNP is also not a popular democratic party. In a free election, the people would have voted against the failed and corrupt government. That is no popularity of BNP. But the people would have used their sovereign voting power. The crux of the crisis lies here. None of the leaders of the two major parties has the idea that democracy is government by institutions and they were easily used to destroy democratic institutions. To them, democracy means power through election rigged or fair.We have to agree that we need political reform and not just election. But if politics is to be democratically and peacefully reformed then there is no alternative but to try free and fair elections. This is the way for public opinion to prevail in party politics and governance. The crisis for the democratic politics lies in the role of the businessmen and jobless bureaucrats that they are playing in politics. The political leaders without having political experience listen to the advice of anti-democratic power thirsty elements. They are happy to be in power governing or not.The unfortunate part is that our political leaders cannot see how they are being made irrelevant for politics. The politicians cannot survive without popular support and without democracy. Power is slipping out from them.
