EDITORIAL: It’s unfortunate that a rare year that will see more than 40 general elections across the world – which means about 41 percent of the world’s population and 42 percent of its GDP will have a chance to elect new leaders – started with a controversial, disputed and completely one-sided show in Bangladesh that gave Sheikh Hasina a “guaranteed” fifth term in office.
The ruling Awami League’s victory, never really in doubt as tens of thousands of opposition leaders and workers were arrested and throw into packed jails, was completely assured when the main opposition BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party) boycotted the Sunday election.
They had asked for the PM to step down and make way for a caretaker setup for the election – on the lines of the Pakistani system – but since nothing of the sort was ever on the cards, BNP’s desperate tactics only amounted to giving AL the win on a platter.
Now Sheikh Hasina is further entrenched in power, with BNP leader Khalida Zia on her death bed in house arrest and her son Tarique Rahman trying to lead the party from exile in London, and no manner of concern or even outrage about “free and fair polls” from the international community will make any difference.
But now that the election is over and victory achieved, the ruling party must not make the mistake of going for the kill and continuing to target BNP cadres. For the good of her country and its people, Sheikh Hasina must turn all her attention to polishing the brighter side of her divisive profile.
There’s no doubt that her government’s policies were pivotal in turning Bangladesh from a poverty hub to a leader of the global textile export economy. It’s also crushed military misadventures and put the country’s traditionally intrusive clergy in its place.
But it’s equally true that she’s never been able to control her authoritarian urges, not even bothering to tone down when the opposition made legitimate political demands. Now she has only herself to blame that BNP’s claim – that she’s bent upon turning the country into a one-party state – is resonating louder than ever before. This has left her open to charges of undermining the institution of democracy in Bangladesh, something that the international press can fuss about and even hurt foreign investment.
Two very important points always come out of such elections. One, it never pays for any party to boycott elections. BNP’s best bet was a very low voter turnout that would question the legitimacy of the poll. But that is never possible when the ruling party is left alone to dispute the eventual count. And two, the people are always left more disillusioned. For, even those that stayed away because there was no point in voting when only one big party was contesting were left to rue the fact that nothing had changed.
There are lessons in this for people gearing up to vote in so many other countries this year. Hopefully, none of the other contests will be “sham” elections, as BNP fittingly described the Bangladeshi experience.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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