Ershad: Polls-time government should consist of current lawmakers

Jatiya Party (Japa) Chairman HM Ershad has expressed his hopes that his party would make history by winning the 11th parliamentary polls due in December this year. “People want me to give messages. My first message is we’ll create a history by forming the next government through a fair election. We as well as the country are ready for it. We want a fair election and the government will be forced to arrange the election in a credible and fair manner,” the over-optimistic military dictator told a rally organized by his party at Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka on Saturday. Saturday marked 36 years of a coup through which he came into power in 1982. Ershad claimed that there is no peace anywhere in the country, and no one has any security. “We’ve not been in power for over 25 years. The two parties (Awami League and BNP) ruled the country during this period. What did they give to the people? They talk big, but couldn’t give us anything except injustice, repression, unemployment and violence against women.” He said his party has preparations to return to power. “We’ll ensure security and jobs for people of all levels. We’ll work to prevent plundering and violence from the country if we can return to power.” Holding the hand of his wife and the Opposition leader in Parliament, Raushan Ershad, he also made a vow to build a new Bangladesh. Hundreds of leaders and activists of the party from across the country joined the rally that began around 10:30am. Raushan, also the co-chairman of the party, said they would not let any political parties of the country use Jatiya Party as “staircase for stepping into power as it has now turned into a very strong and popular party.” She said their party would independently field candidates for all 300 constituencies in the next polls to return to power.

'Polls-time government should consist of current lawmakers’

HM Ershad suggested an interim government during the election should consist of lawmakers of those political parties that have representation in current Parliament. He said: “Under the constitutional method, a polls-time interim government needs to be formed. The government should consist of lawmakers of current Parliament. “We don’t have faith in any caretaker government, because in the past, no caretaker government has ever done justice to our Jatiya Patry.”

JaPa’s 18-point demand

JaPa chief Ershad also put forward an 18-point demand including the introduction of provincial system, reform of the existing electoral system, not increasing utility prices, and imposing a ban on strikes and blockades in the name of protest programs.Parts of this article were taken from banglatribune.com and UNB.