There are staunch political supporters, there are those who never wear their political beliefs on their sleeves, retaining their party of preference close to their hearts and then there are the turncoats.
In reality, the third force has done more damage to our politics than anything else, conveniently changing sides or disappearing when the party they were once loyal to vociferously is voted out of power.
Of course in Bangladeshi politics, the culture of harassing political activists of the non-ruling party is always deemed a potent political move and, given the constant pressure, active supporters are often forced to curtail their social engagements.
But keeping a low profile is one thing and quietly changing sides is something totally different. Yet, the game of suddenly changing colour from AL to BNP and vice versa is noticed usually during polls time.
The astringent denunciation of anything that reeks of anti-ruling party abruptly becomes mellow as nebulous diplomatic lines become prominent. Trust me, this trick is the oldest in the book but it never fails!
Kudos to the sage who once said: “Human memory is short, so exploit it to the hilt.”
Some real life examples are needed here. The writer lives on Elephant Road and has been here till 1972, so, as the country moved through all the notable political upheavals, he had the chance to see the interesting human affiliation to politics undergo transformations.
During the Ershad regime, all the local boro bhais (gang leaders) were Jatiya Party. The police never bothered them, locals promptly took their hand to their foreheads to offer the Islamic salutation, though sometimes the leaders simply nodded an acknowledgement and, in other cases, thought it wise to ignore.
You must learn some political lessons here: “When you want to appear powerful and fearsome, ignore people around you as if they do not exist.”
Right, the autocrat was not forever, like most things in life, therefore, post 1990 all these top leaders suddenly became champions of democracy, choosing either AL or BNP.
Whenever the party in preference came to power, their visibility increased – overseeing the assiduous application of party graffiti on the wall, leading the procession and mobilising starry-eyed youngsters with grand political ambitions for rallies.
In between all this, taking over the toll collecting of the area was a prime interest. Indeed this was more alluring.
Obviously, a leader cannot live on his money so the restaurants in the area will not charge for the food and the departmental store will gladly open a credit book with no questions asked.
Err … questions will be asked after the five year period when another party is in power. But if the local rongbaj (thug) has been adept in changing sides then the book will be for perpetuity.
One of my local friends was SK. He did not have any formal education but since both of us played football, camaraderie developed.
Soon SK discovered that playing for a second division football club did not offer any chance of glory and took to politics supported by the gang culture of the early nineties, better known as “taorashi.”
From ruthlessly manipulating the throwaway cotton lot business from the garment factories of the area jhut (garment waste) trade, to taking regular financial donations from traders with frozen smiles and palpitating hearts, he openly pledged allegiance to the party in power.
Compared to this, the image as a striker for Lalbagh club seemed really grey.
Things were moving okay but when it became obvious that in the 2001 elections there would be a change of leadership, my pal swiftly began maintaining his contacts with the other side.
“Side change is done,” his bold statement still rings in my ears.
Unfortunately, rongbaji (thuggish behaviour) never has a noble end and within two years, he was shot and killed over a feud, not relating to politics but the distribution of “income” from the area.
Please remember, the word illegitimate does not exist in the dictionary of political goons.
Interestingly, the law never managed to teach him any lesson because he had the right connections with the police station responsible for Dhanmondi ward 52 and the backup of the political high-up.
Anyway, lets come to the present: Elections are not too far away and once the current theatrics are over, the nation will get ready for the polls while the turncoats will become active.
The writer notices some frenetic movements in the area, especially in a new apartment building near the Xian Chinese restaurant where pre-election assessment is going on in full swing.
Don’t worry, political loyalty has no place here; the pivotal concern here is profit. The political label of the party only works to give all their operations a feel of legitimacy while the parties believe they have some loyal followers.
The equation is simple: If the party is not in power, income will see a fall and all those who had resorted to super- fast veneration may look the other way.
But there is always a second option: Start the procedure to change your colours.
Wait, even in switching sides the act has to be very subtle because as yet we do not know who will govern Bangladesh in the next five years.
Therefore, the prudent thing to do: Keep a low profile and then emerge when the time is right. The political banner of choice will be decided by the polls, naturally.
As our memory is short, soon people will forget; incomes will soar again while political parties will feel honoured to have such supporters. Meanwhile, the police, reportedly the most politicised of all institutions, will carry on providing impunity to “significant field level activists.”
