This year’s observance of Bangabandhu’s death anniversary has been marked by a blistering attack on the JSD, a coalition partner of the AL government, by some prominent AL leaders. This was done for the role this party had played as the then opposition party in denigrating Bangabandhu and the AL government, thus creating a volatile political situation, a suitable recipe for the dastardly military coup which took place and changed the course of our history for a while.
This is, perhaps, the first time that AL leaders have come out against the JSD for its anti-AL role leading up to the August 15 tragedy. True, the JSD -- then headed by Major (Retd) MA Jalil, who later died in Pakistan -- had launched a broadside on Bangabandhu and the AL government, some of the left-leaning firebrands coming down upon Bangabandhu with all sorts of invectives, hurling them at this great man.
Newspapers of those days will certainly bear this out. Since then, many political chameleons have changed their colours and have become great admirers of Bangabandhu and Sheikh Hasina.
It is my understanding that military coups take place where the government is autocratic and hugely unpopular for riding roughshod over the sentiments of the people, because, to succeed, coup leaders need some sort of political backing and a good measure of public support. Where there is genuine democracy and rule of law in place, there is no scope for a military coup.
In the event, the JSD, intent on fighting the AL government on the streets head-on and bringing it down forcefully, and the Khondakar Mostaq-led AL faction plotting against Bangabandhu, provided the coup leaders the political space and support they needed.
The great man also may have lost touch with the people because of Baksal, a one-party rule. When Gen Ershad removed the newly-elected BNP government of Justice Sattar and captured power, he could see muted jubilation in the AL camp at the removal of the BNP government.
There is no denying that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is the founder of this country. He united the 75 million people of this country and made them take up arms and fight for our independence from Pakistan. “Joi Bangla, Joi Bangabandhu” used to be our battle-cry as our freedom fighters launched assaults on the Pakistan occupation army.
He epitomises Bangladesh like nobody else does, with all its charm and agony, and remains an icon for us. No appellation is too much for this great man of Himalayan stature.
But then, he was a human being and therefore made mistakes. Baksal was the only mistake he made, one which people of this country could not come to terthe ms with.
The way the AL leadership is trying to cash in politically on observing the birth and death anniversaries of Bangabandhu could end up eroding his popularity and distancing the AL from the people. Too much of anything is bad. Declaring the whole month of August as a month of mourning can hardly be justified.
It will only help corrupt party members to make money as they go about collecting funds from the public in the name of mourning. Displaying placards and billboards with large pictures of party leaders is another profitable business.
Besides, holding ceremonies, in which the prime minister and the president lay wreaths at the grave of Bangabandhu in Tungipara with a large entourage of dignitaries and security personnel moving from Dhaka and back, entail huge expenditure from the government exchequer.
This spending could be curtailed if only the president and the prime minister could fly together in a helicopter to place wreaths at Bangabandhu’s grave.
As a developing country with the LDC tag still attached to our name, trying to break out of the scourge of poverty and unemployment, we at state-level must work hard, practice austerity, and wage a crusade against corruption. Let us have more working hours and less public holidays.
Many of us are maybe not aware that we observe as many as 25 public holidays in a year. The US observes just 12 public holidays and South Africa, 13. I mention these two countries because, what Bangabandhu is to us, General George Washington and Nelson Mandela are to the people of the USA and South Africa respectively.
If Begum Khaleda Zia, the BNP chairperson, wishes to celebrate her birthday by cutting a huge cake in the company of her party leaders and well-wishers, why should we raise our eyebrows?
Millions of men and women have been born on August 15 and many more millions of people will continue to be born on this day. People must have the right to celebrate their birthdays and those of their near and dear ones.
The best way to pay homage to the memory of Bangabandhu is to establish genuine democracy and rule of law, and create a social order free from exploitation, in this country. These are the goals Bangabandhu had fought for throughout his political career in Pakistan. But he could not achieve these goals in this war-ravaged country when he was at the helm of affairs. There were far too many people to loot and let loot. There were far too few to help him stop them.
