Politicians and civil society members have urged the government to consider the ongoing student movement to bring discipline in streets as a wake-up call, and take necessary measures.
They called on the government on Saturday to take effective measures to implement their demands, and ensure safer roads for all.
Former adviser to the caretaker government Rasheda K Chowdhury said the demands and the movement initiated by the students are logical.
“Since the prime minister has given assurance that the demands for safer roads will be met, as an academician, I think, students should return to the classroom and concentrate on their studies,” said Rasheda, also executive director of the education advocacy group Campaign for Popular Education (Campe).
She said their fellow citizens will join them again if the nine-point demand is not met.
“There is a possibility of politicizing the movement as all political parties try to take advantage of this kind of thing, which we have already seen. This might lead the demonstration to be a complete failure,” she said, requesting the students to return to their classrooms to keep politicians from possibly politicizing the issue.
“There are enough laws in the country to control the anarchy in the public transport sector, and proper implementation of these laws can reduce the people’s concerns regarding road safety,” Rasheda added.
Since we cannot ensure instant punishment due to legal procedures, the government can launch month-long drives - as it did with food adulteration - to check route permits, driving license, and fitness of the vehicles to stop the anarchy in the sector, she further added.
Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan) Secretary Badiul Alam Majumdar thinks students have been successful in helping the government see that there is a lack of laws and rules in the transportation sector, which brought anarchy in the roads and led to many deaths.
“At one stage, the students will have to go back to their classrooms. But the government has to come up with a long-term solution to ensure safer roads for all,” Badiul added.
“Criminals have taken advantage of the transport sector, and as a result, the whole system has broken down. I think the government has been able to realize it due to the recent student protests, and will take measures to bring discipline,” he said.
Badiul added that compensation for victims or donation of buses to a school cannot be a solution.
“Government has to take steps to break the nexus among the criminals engaged in the transport sector. Otherwise, it will have an impact not only on the lives of people, but also the economy as a whole,” he added.
Junaid Saki, convener of Gono Songhoti Andolon, said students have taken to the streets as they see it as part of their responsibility, and love for the peers who were killed in the road accident.
“Students will return to their classrooms when they see the government has taken significant steps to ensure the demands will be met,” he added.
Saki also said that students have shown that everything is possible if the government has the will to act on it.
“I think the government should consider the student movement as an achievement and take effective measures to implement the demands, and in ensuring safer roads for the all citizens.”
Junaid suggested the government could introduce a company under Private-Public Partnership (PPP) or a single company for a single route to stop the anarchy in the transport sector.
Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, however, finds no logic for the continuation of the movement as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has already declared to meet the students’ demands, and provided compensation to the victims’ family.
“Once the Road Transport Act 2018 gets the cabinet nod on Monday, the transport sector will see significant changes once it is implemented,” he said.
