A section of civil society of Bangladesh have termed the upcoming 12th national polls as ‘one-sided’ which will be held on January 7.
They also said that this election will not gain acceptance and legitimacy at home and abroad, and as a result, Bangladesh may face various international sanctions and obstacles.
They opined that in particular, any ban on the garment industry would devastate the millions of women working in the industry and the economy as a whole.
Also, this one-sided election will further chill the country's relations with the development partners.
Therefore, to present an acceptable election, they called on the government to organize a national election that ensures the participation of all major parties, according to them.
They came up with these observations at a round table event organized by the Center for Governance Studies (CGS) titled “Bangladesh at the Crossroads: Election, Economy, and External Relations.”
Zillur Rahman, executive director of CGS, highlighted three aspects of Bangladesh’s ongoing transition that need a critical look.
The three aspects are the election, the economy, and external relations.
Dr Manjur A Chowdhury, Chairman, CGS, who presided over the roundtable, stated that the current multifaceted crisis that Bangladesh is facing is unprecedented. The economy is in dire straits. Forex reserves are plummeting.
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Distinguished Fellow, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), stated that recently a big country in Europe sent its military into a smaller country, calling the action a “special military operation”. Similarly, the upcoming election in Bangladesh should not be called an election, but rather, a “special election operation”.
Former Election Commissioner M Sakhawat Hossain said that competitive politics in the country will vanish after the 12th parliamentary election.
“Competitive politics will no longer exist in the country. Liberal democracy should be forgotten,” he said.
"Some people want to say, it is participatory only if the people participate. So why do we question dictators? Participatory means the participation of the parties that can challenge and make the election competitive,” he said.
"Whichever party has assumed power, they have corrupted the system. While 5% of votes are being cast, it is being shown as 15%. No matter whether the rate of voting is credible or not,” he added.
He also expressed doubts about whether 20% to 25% voter turnout will happen in the upcoming election.
Sakhawat termed the 12th parliamentary election as a process of “finding out an opposition party” adding that 26 parties are participating in the elections, no one can name 13 of them.
After sharing seats with the allies, 240 seats are guaranteed for the ruling party, he said.
Sakhawat feels that “a new definition” of participatory elections is being created through the next election.
Former Cabinet Secretary Ali Imam Majumder said that the election result has lost its appeal.
“The question has been raised if the opposition party which participates in the election will be elected without the help of the ruling party,” he said.
He feared that radical forces could rise in absence of a strong political opposition.
Former Governor of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) Dr Salehuddin Ahmed said that all the regulatory bodies have lost their authority, resulting in corruption.
He said the economy will be on the right track while politics runs in the right direction.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Mazid, former chairman, National Board of Revenue (NBR), stated that politics and the economy need to be separated. Unless matters of the economy are handled independently of politics, the common people will not benefit. Now, the economy is suffering.
ZI Khan Panna, Advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, stated that the upcoming elections cannot be considered democratic in any way. It is a democracy for the corrupt people. The declared assets of the running candidates show a 30% to 400% increase in wealth since the last election.
Economist Ahsan H Mansur said that the government is giving some indexes of the economy, which do not match with real pictures.
Referring to the GDP percentage, he said that the GDP figures do not match with the employment, tax-GDP, and revenue collection statistics, he said
Banks are losing the ability to help the government and the private sector as huge looting occurred in the banking sector in the last few years, said Mansur.
NewAge editor Nurul Kabir said there is no chance for the government party to lose in the next election.
He said: “The first step to establish democracy is a fair election. This step could not be taken over the last 52 years. Unscrupulous businessmen, unscrupulous politicians, and bureaucrats have formed a cycle. There is no way out without breaking this cycle.”
Kabir thinks that the government is going to hold a one-party election against the wishes of the people.
At the event, representatives from foreign missions, embassies, and international organizations of several nations were present to observe the dialogue.
