Every revolution, every mass upsurge ushers in new possibilities in our national life. A post-revolution environment also gives rise to many popular aspirations. It is a major challenge for any government formed as a direct product of revolution to cope with the pressure of popular will.
Now, as we stand just four days away from the celebration of the first anniversary of July 36, it seems very difficult to reconcile public expectations with actual delivery.
The main objective of last year’s Monsoon Revolution was inevitably achieved with the fall of Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024. A government that was democratically elected 17 years ago clung to power through a series of fraudulent elections and became an absolute dictatorship.
It turned into a neo-fascist regime, crushing all forms of dissent. Politically, it had become so hollow that it failed to read the writing on the wall. Its downfall had been long coming, and a successful student-people uprising saw it overthrown.
But this is not an end in itself. Overthrowing an utterly corrupt, inept government is one thing; steering the nation forward is another.
If memory serves us right, we can recall that we had opportunities in the past to clear away old clutter and build a nation based on the aspirations of the people.
Unfortunately, we failed to make the best use of those windows of opportunity and didn’t do much justice to the sacrifices of many youths who shed blood for democratic emancipation.
Post-1990 Bangladesh is a prime example. We were unable to reap the benefits of the fall of dictator Ershad. An all-party charter, earned through the bloodletting of hundreds of grassroots political foot soldiers, soon evaporated.
The country transformed from a military dictatorship to a parliamentary democracy, but the politicians didn’t. They continued to toy with election tampering and dictated terms that best suited those in power.
When we failed to hold any fair polls under party-led governments, we customized a non-party caretaker system as an alternative.
Through trial and error, as we were about to weather ourselves into the caretaker model, quite abruptly—and arbitrarily—we withdrew from that poll-time interim arrangement.
People were reduced to mere bystanders, as if they had nothing to say. And what followed next is now history -- three sham elections in a row.
A year after regime change, courtesy of the July Revolution, the air is thick with public suspicion over whether another opportunity to rebuild democracy in Bangladesh is being lost. It is incumbent upon the Yunus-led transitional government to dispel such suspicion.
It is sad but true that many of the actions of this government over the past year have completely failed to fulfill the aspirations of the people. The people have not been convinced that this is a government capable of delivering.
They talk a lot about justice, but are people seeing justice? Aren’t many people being wrongly detained under false charges? Isn’t vengeance getting the better of them? I’m sure thousands would join me in my thoughts had the answers been negative. We would have praised the government. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.
They talk about reform, but are people seeing reforms take solid ground? Don’t many continue to face corruption and harassment in the system -- one they believed had changed for the better?
When it comes to public service delivery, are people being better served? We would have praised the government had it made any meaningful difference. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.
And the less said about the election date, the better. All along, there has been a mixed signal -- vague, to say the least. Nothing serious, nothing concrete.
Tying and untying elections with reform has created unnecessary illusions. The government could easily dispel the growing public suspicion about the election timeframe.
Reform must be a continuous journey -- regardless of whether a nation is going to the polls. Yunus' government, riding on the chariot of youth, must remember that an entire generation of young voters (now roughly aged between 18 and 28) has never had the chance to exercise their right to vote in this country. They are looking forward to a good election -- the sooner, the better.
I presume they won’t long endure a government that issues exam postponement notices in the wee hours, just as the roosters proclaim dawn.
Reaz Ahmad is Editor, Dhaka Tribune.
