Political parties eye election now

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has already welcomed the July declaration and the announcement to hold the upcoming election in February. The party has also officially entered into the electoral process with that.

However, a few parties, including the National Citizen Party (NCP), Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Andolan, have expressed dissatisfaction over some issues related to the July declaration and election schedule. Neither of the parties, though, has any objection regarding the time announced for the election.

These three parties, which have grown into rivals of the BNP in the changed political context after the mass uprising of 5 August, stressed on ensuring level playing field. Most of the parties, apart from these, have welcomed the election time announced by the chief adviser.

Political analysts say that with the July Declaration and the announcement of the national election time by interim government's chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus, the political parties have effectively been set on course for the election. All eyes are now on the Election Commission's announcement of the election schedule.

Meanwhile, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman praised the government for presenting the July declaration and announcing election timeline, while addressing one of the party rallies virtually.

He said, “We welcome these initiatives to ensure people’s rights”

However, there are concerns among some parties, including Jamaat, NCP and Islami Andolan, whether the government will be able to create a level playing field. They think the law enforcement agencies are still not organised. They are still uncertain about the effective role of other forces and agencies involved in the process. A gap remains between them and the government in this regard.

Leaders of these parties believe that, so far, the overall political atmosphere across the country appears to be largely one-sided in favour of a few parties. In such a situation, ensuring neutrality at all levels of the administration, including the Election Commission, would be quite challenging. They fear that without effective initiatives and steps from the government, efforts to hold an acceptable election may be hindered.

Yesterday, Jamaat, NCP, and Islami Andolan issued official reactions regarding the July Declaration and the announcement of the national election timeline. While they did not object to the timing of the election, they did express disappointment over certain issues.

At a press conference organised by Islami Andolan Bangladesh yesterday, the party’s ameer Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim said, “A level playing field has yet to be created for the election. Under such circumstances, it will be difficult for us to take part in the polls. At present, the administration is not functioning properly, and the government is failing to control it. In such a situation, if the election is held, candidates will face security risks. I ask you, why should we contest the election under such risks?”

Speaking to Prothom Alo, a reliable leader of Jamaat-e-Islami told Prothom Alo that they were not dissatisfied with the announcement of the election timeframe. However, they believed the process of the announcement was flawed.

According to them, 5 August was the anniversary of the mass uprising and is a significant day. It would have been better if the chief adviser had stopped with only the July Declaration on that day instead of delivering an address to the nation and announcing the election timeframe that evening. It could have been done on 8 August, the anniversary of the government's assumption of office, which would have highlighted the importance of that day.

The time in between could have been used to uphold the long-standing tradition of holding discussions with political parties before announcing the election date. That would have made the announcement of the election more graceful.

In his reaction to the chief adviser's announcement, Jamaat-e-Islami nayeb-e-ameer Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher told Prothom Alo, “We welcome the election on the condition that the upcoming polls must be held through reforms. A conducive environment for free, fair and impartial elections must be ensured.”

BNP had long been demanding that the country move swiftly towards elections and announce the polling date. At the same time, some key stakeholders and institutions of the state also wanted the election to be held without delay. It is also learnt that several members of the interim government's advisory council wish to step down after holding the election promptly. Altogether, pressure had mounted regarding the announcement of the election date.

At a press conference yesterday, BNP gave its official reaction to the chief adviser’s address to the nation, in which he announced that the next national parliamentary election would be held in February. Terming the announcement “historic”, BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said it would help end the political deadlock and pave the way for democratic transition. BNP expressed hope that the government and the Election Commission would take all necessary steps to ensure that the election is free, fair, impartial, and acceptable to all.

Some of the parties, which are not satisfied with the July declaration, have now shifted their focus on the July National Charter. Leaders of several parties, including Jamaat, NCP and Islami Andolan, say they aim to ensure that the next poll is held on the basis of the July charter. For this, they will declare programmes at field level to mount political pressure on the government to ensure that the July Charter has a legal basis.

While addressing a press conference, Jamaat nayeb-e-ameer Abdullah Mohammad Taher said his party has no objection with elections being held in February. But before that the government must ensure a legal basis of the July Charter and level playing field.

He said, “We are observing that the government has not yet been able to create a conducive environment as it was expected. So the election needs to be held on the basis of the July Charter as per the election timeline given by the chief adviser to ensure it is free and fair.”

Meanwhile, NCP has demanded the upcoming election to be held on the basis of implementation of the July Charter and declaration. NCP member secretary Akhter Hossain said in a press conference yesterday that the NCP has no objection to the government’s proposed timeline of holding the election between December and June. However, the government must pledge the neutrality of the field administration and ensure a level playing field before the election.

At a press conference organised by Islami Andolan, the party’s ameer and Charmonai Pir Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim said, “We want to make it clear that a legal basis for the July Charter must be established either by issuing an ordinance or through a referendum, and the national election must be arranged on the basis of that charter.”

No objection over election date, dissatisfaction with July declaration

Speaking to several top level leaders of the Jamaat, NCP and Islami Andolan, it has been learnt that they have no objection over the election date. However, the July Declaration did not come out as they expected.

Expressing disappointment, the three parties have issued separate official reactions over the matter.

Jamaat nayeb-e-ameer, Amir Abdullah Mohammad Taher said although they were disappointed by the July declaration, they wanted to take it positively in the interest of the country.

Leaders of these parties believe that since the bilateral meeting between Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus and BNP’s acting chairman Tarique Rahman in London on 13 June, the government has been moving forward prioritising BNP’s demands. They say BNP’s demands were given precedence in both the July Charter and the announcement of the election timeline.

This correspondent spoke to several senior policymakers of Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Andolan after the chief adviser announced the July Charter at the South Plaza of the National Parliament Building last Tuesday.

They assume the government prepared the July declaration with BNP’s consent. The draft of the declaration wasn’t provided to all political parties. Jamaat-e-Islami was brought into the fold at almost the last moment during a meeting held in Gulshan on Friday night.

Sources say the meeting was attended by three leaders from the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami and NCP, along with six advisers of the government. The Islami Andolan was not informed about the matter.

A leader of Islami Andolan told Prothom Alo that two advisers had called him and requested their presence at the July Declaration event at the South Plaza of the National Parliament building. Later, Islami Andolan’s ameer Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim attended the event.

Meanwhile, National Citizen Party (NCP) believes that certain issues were left out of the July Declaration. At a press conference yesterday, the party’s member secretary Akhtar Hossain said it is the government’s mandatory duty to ensure visible progress in the trial of people involved in the mass killing and implement reforms before the election. He added that the promises made in the July Declaration must be implemented in Bangladesh.

Political analysts believe that the July Declaration largely reflects the politics of the BNP. Speaking to Prothom Alo on the matter, writer and political researcher Mohiuddin Ahmad said, “The declaration should have included an account of the 54-year system of governance, but it didn’t.”

In his view, the July Charter has now taken a back seat in both the declaration and the announcement of the election. The political parties will likely move towards the election from here on, he added.