The Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury attributed the price fall of potatoes in the north this season to the BNP-led movement. At the post-budget press conference on June 6, she employed all efforts to undermine the demonstration for fair polls but never admitted her government’s responsibility in any way.
An observer can cite hundreds of examples of how our politicians use public interest issues to try to fool the people. They manage to carry on and sometimes even win through campaigns to demonise the opponents.
In our boyhood, we witnessed quiz competitions during wedding ceremonies where one camp would ask the other what the Bangla translation of “I don’t know” is. When a naïve person gave the right answer, the rivals immediately claimed victory by saying that the competitors did not know the answer.
In democratic politics, however, politicians encounter difficulties in announcing a unilateral victory. Yet most ruling parties live in a fool’s paradise when it comes to assessing people’s perception of their statements. Perhaps we need an IQ test for everyone.
What does zero tolerance imply when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina says her government will show zero tolerance to terrorism and corruption? She promised in parliament that she would take responsibility for Shamim Osman’s family in Narayanganj, against whom there are several allegations of violence and killing.
What if she certifies someone as a patriot? Bangladeshi people have not been able to recognise the true Syed Abul Hossain, and neither has the World Bank who for “all the wrong reasons” – allegations of corruption – withdrew funds from the Padma Bridge project. Ah! The patriot has been dumped.
Media watchers are familiar with the expression: “I have information (that Awami League will return to power).” Yes, it was the statement by the premier’s son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, after the AL’s defeat in all four city corporation elections prior to the general elections. We saw many people laughing at it in view of the slip in the party’s popularity, but Joy proved to be right ultimately. So, the equation stands at: Information equals to blueprint (for a manipulated ballot).
Conspiracy is a widely used word which has lost its appeal. Conspicuously, most conspiracies are designed against unpopular governments or non-functioning institutions. We were told about conspiracies of militant threats before the January 5 elections. By now, the “militants” have disappeared but the Hasina government is focused on other conspiracies.
A vocal politician against “violence” is Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu, whose Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal once challenged an elected AL government to an armed battle. Even his theory of socialism has changed after the Gano Bahini fiasco and his joining the government.
Westerners often get confused about bipartisanship, which in our case, denotes divisive politics. Godfather is another term which finds a completely different connotation in our coverage of the underworld, whereas originally it had nothing to do with terrorism.
Political activists perceive the word “reformist” as a collaborator of the military-controlled regime of 2007-08. Last year, many online writers were scared of introducing themselves as bloggers, lest they were treated as atheists. Who is really bothered about the actual meanings of Razakar, Al-Badr, and Al-Shams, terms which people use to mean collaborators of the Pakistani occupation forces?
When someone emphasises on the spirit of the liberation war every now and then, there is no problem in ascertaining who he/she is. Unless one belongs to a particular political gharana (school of thought/camp), it is almost impossible to earn a reputation in upholding such spirit. It is a pity that the people are losing confidence in those who are doing business banking on this spirit.
Hallmark and Destiny are euphemistic expressions, but Bangladeshis have been presented with horrifying meanings for them. Hallmark has made a hallmark in swindling – drawing fake loans of over Tk4,000cr. Destiny offered the clients a model of losing money. The moment people talk about tenders or the share market, they equate the two with a common word – manipulation.
A black cat was used in a television documentary by BTV to make people aware about the risks of AIDS. However, it has been synonymous with allegations of bribery against former minister Suranjit Sengupta. Black Cats are an elite security force in India, but in Bengali it indicates corruption. Interestingly, Sengupta earlier made a pledge to remove the black cat from the railway department.
A home minister would describe a gruesome killing supposedly as an isolated incident. So, the people understand either the ruling party men are behind the incident or the government wants to divert public attention.
A section of politicians term a particular country a tested friend of Bangladesh but never raise questions about the harms caused by that country. Economic Affairs Adviser Dr Masihur Rahman went on to ask if Bangladeshis are a civilised people when they were to charge fees for providing transit facility to a neighbouring country. Taxes and tariffs are innovations of the civilised world, and who knows how the uncivilised society levied transit fees?
On the pledge of “Digital Bangladesh,” a Bangladeshi op-ed writer wrote from the USA: “Digital? Not Bangladesh.” We come up with brilliant ideas, falter soon, and finally lose the true meaning of it.
