PM to start election campaign soon
Prime minister and Awami League (AL) president Sheikh Hasina will begin her party's election campaign on 30 January, almost a year ahead of the upcoming national parliamentary polls.
She will visit Barisal on 8 February and then other divisional cities as part of her polls campaign tour, party leaders said.
Premier Hasina will then start touring the administrative districts, in view of their importance for the AL during the parliamentary elections.
Other central AL leaders will in the meantime start their countrywide campaign from 26 January, they said. A total of 15 separate teams have been formed for these tours.
A office has been set up in the city's Dhanmondi to manage election strategies, monitoring and organisational activities.
In the past, Hasina had always begun her election campaign after the election schedule was announced. She used to start or end her campaign by visiting the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal (RH).
According to senior AL leaders, this is a ‘pre-election campaign’. The premier will have several more tours after the polls schedule is announced, sources in the party said.
The premier, while addressing the nation to mark the completion of her government's four years at the helm, spoke on when and how the next elections will take place.
In her 12 January address to the nation, Hasina expressed her optimism that all the parties registered with the election commission (EC) would join the elections to be held under her government.
Hasina’s speech has heated up the election-oriented political activities in the country. Things are likely to heat up further with the divisional and district wise election campaign of the prime minister and other AL leaders, observers say.
AL leaders think there is no chance of repeating the 5 January 2014 election as BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia is determined to participate in the next elections.
The AL leaders also feel that early campaigning is needed to control the situation to address any grudges among the people as the government has stayed in power for two continuous terms. The party's internal conflicts with more than one candidate vying for nomination in most of the seats is also an issue, party leaders admitted.
AL presidium member Abdur Razzak told Prothom Alo that there is no other option than campaigning. The Awami League will definitely win if the people are apprised of the development works of the government, he added. He said that the party will be much stronger after prime minister and the party committees complete their respected tours.
City corporation, national polls both in sight
The Awami League and government sources said along with visiting the shrine and holding political rallies, the prime minster during her Sylhet tour will inaugurate and lay the foundation of several development projects. All her official visits outside of Dhaka will include political rallies.
Reliable AL sources said the divisional tours are being carried out with the national and city corporation elections in view. The city corporation elections in five cities - Gazipur, Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal - are expected to be held in March-April.
According to the local government election rules, the prime minister, ministers, and member of the parliament, cannot participate in any election campaign.
That is why the ruling party chief is expected to complete her divisional tour before the election schedule is announced.
BNP candidates won in all these five city corporation elections in 2013.
15 teams of central leaders
Each of the 15 teams of the central leaders comprises six to 16 members. These teams will hold rallies and meetings from upazila to district level till the announcement of the national election schedule. The party has 76 organisational districts across the country, distributed among these teams.
AL presidium member Faruk Khan said the committees will hold meetings to explain to the people the merits of electing Awami AL candidates. The committees will also make people understand the demerits of electing the BNP-Jamaat alliance candidates and the loss they have done to the country, he added.
A central AL leader, on condition of anonymity, said party chief Sheikh Hasina has asked the party leaders to highlight two factors. Firstly, the development done by the government and secondly, the violence allegedly committed by BNP-Jamaat men and the graft case against BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia and her family.
The publication section of the party has been instructed to publish booklets on a large scale on the development works done by the government and also highlighting the negative activities of the BNP.
Sushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Sujan) secretary Bodiul Alam said it is the AL's political right to show the government’s development and to promote the negative activity of the opposition. But, he said, there is also the question as to whether the other parties are getting the same right or not as the opposition is not allowed to hold any programme and is attacked in the streets.
According to him, there should be level-playing field for everyone.
*This report, originally published in Prothom Alo print edition, has been rewritten in English by Saimul Huda.