This dawn must have mystified us with its freshening dew drops and the early morning cups of tea with a difference. We should have formally drawn the curtain over nostalgia of the year gone by one second past last midnight, but it somehow lingers as everyone will vouch for that. We are for shortening the' length of bemoaning what we had failed to do and also for not resting on the small laurels. Gazing at the crystal-ball as a by stander to progression of events is not our Idea as well.

We are basically interested in pinpointing the issues that lie ahead for handling in 1997 against the backdrop of where these have been left off at the close of 1996 and in the light of where we think alterations in approaches are necessary^to take the country forward.

The opposition boycott of parliament casts Its shadow over national politics. And since we regard the behaviour of the polity as key to socioeconomic equilibrium, the spectre of de-stabillsa-tion also looms, by the same token. The BNP may well have made some valid points as far as opposition coverage over the electronic media and its feelings of being victimised go. but whatever grievance-related justifications they have cannot legitimise their parliamentary stand-off. If they continue with it into the third session of JS then their hell-bent attitude to governance, of which they are also a part, is bound to give them an irreparable public exposure. At the other pole, the government party's handling of the opposition has left room for improvement.

Imbued with the spirit of the new year both sides should now shake hands on their critical differences that stand in the way of forging working relations between them. They are urged to come on top of this wild-goose-chase inside of the week, make the third session of JS a full-house affair and lay the brick-work for minimally tolerant and consensual politics sooner than later.

Admittedly, the present ruling party has been serious about the business of governance as the slight Improvement in law and economic management seem to indicate. The Rules of Business has been altered to make the ministers effective with their portfolios. The water treaty has given a leap forward and early signs of a thaw are being read Into in the CHT situation.

We have worked out a frame of agenda for the new year which is as follows: Law and order needs improving further within two months to be congenial to civic security, higher education and economic uplift. The next six months should see the installation of a remodelled local self-government system, the granting of autonomy to radio and television and establishment of an independent judiciary. By the year-end, we should have an environment in which it is the system that will be triumphant over individuals.