***Awami League has now been catapulted to power for the second time after a waiting for twenty-one years. While imploring voters it vowed for, inter alia, terrorism-free society and poverty alleviating reforms. Nobody has reason to expect them to be realised as early as now, but how the government has begun working to meet those objectives is under people's cautious watch, ***

WHEN the Liberation W;ir of 1971 began almost the whole nation threw in its lot with the political leaders who an nounced action programme for the independence of the country. Preceding years also saw the people courting the political leaders as they unleashed protests and movements against the oppressions of the Pak regime. Politicians of those days seemed to have enjoyed full confidence and high esteem of the people.

When independence of Bangladesh was won at an immense cost of life and property the prime need was reconstruction of the war-battered country. The war caused not only material devastation but also moral wreckage — to heal which leadership of prudence and pragmatism was demanded. The fact is that Awami League was not groomed for armed revolution which was practically thrust upon by the Pakistani military Junta. As a result, the situation that arose in the postliberation Bangladesh was such as Awami League was not supposed to cope with. This is a historical truth. As for example, following the French Revolution of 1789 when the moderate party (of the extremists) Girondin was called upon to face the problems particularly in the teeth of external aggressions, it failed time and again. Welding a national consensus on acceptable programmes by combating discordant forces, some of which came as a byproduct of the war. by an iron hand, if necessary, was the right answer in the newly-emerged Bangladesh. The situation was no doubt very complicated but not wholly unfavourable as. barring a few. the vast majority of the people were for peace and rebuilding the country. When (the Father of the Nation) Sheikh Mujib told the people in gatherings across the country that he would not be able to give the people anything in the following first three years on account of war wreckages and asked them whether they agreed to this non-receipt proposal, the people magnanimously forgot -their perspnal Sufferings and privation" during the war and really.fose geeattto the occasion and vociferously replied in the affirmative. Indeed. it is the people who can. on demand by occasion, sacrifice to be great though their political leaders often cannot.

No one questioned Awami stewardship in the Liberation War. Partymen claimed freedom of Bangladesh as their sole performance. It was better to be recognised as a collective achievement of the nation as a whole. However, as in the Liberation War, for post-liberal ion

recovery of the country too, the people believed in Awami leadership. They were ready to sacrifice more than what they did during nine months' scourge. Bangladesh won global sympathy and help during and after the war. Aids from across the world flowed to the state coffers. Compared to the war damages these were no doubt very meagre, but suspictons about their honest utilization arose painfully in the minds of the people. Amassing fortune through questionable means by scores of partymen together with their lawless activities began to shake the faith of the people in the party leadership. As time advanced, so also the disbelief of the people. Henry Kissinger’s terming Bangladesh as a bottomless basket" may not be fair. But the ruling party should have been fair enough to prove transparency of their activities to retain confidence of the people.

After the most heinous and tragic killing of Bangabandhu with his entire family political scenario was changed but to the worse. That power politics was the end desire of the politicians began to appear clear and vivid. The extra-constitutional regimes (the most liberal term that may be attributed) coming in succession which sometimes laboured to hoodwink the people by a self-donning mantle of democracy did much to sap the left out confidence of the people In the politicians. Plundering of exchequer by political leaders and hangers-on in collaboration with the bureaucrats, civil and military, became rather an open game. To loot people's money needed to deny people’s rights, and this called for musclemen and terrorism which began to play full course. Political game of fishing and fussing evolved and developed by leaps and bounds. Money minting through commission charging, lobbying price and bank loans (non-refundable?) emerged as a political and economic culture. In the consequent doldrums, self-aggrandisement oriented changing of and joining political parties, fake personality cult, vile personal slandering flourished. From Mushtaque to arch auto-' ’drat Ershad the same tradition . continued unabated shaking . ^people's confidence in the politicians to the very foundation.

Worse is that the elected government of Khaleda Zia could not fare better. There were profuse pronouncements of democracy. transparency and accountability but their physical presence was found wanting. The old contrivances of money minting gained in speed. Hood-lumism and toll collection became omnipotent and omnipresent. People's confidence

in politicians suffered further setbacks.

Awami League has now been catapulted to power for the sec ond time after a waiting for twenty-one years. While imploring voters it vowed for. inter alia, terrorism-free society and poverty alleviating reforms. Nobody has reason to expect them to be realised as early as now. but how the government has begun working to meet those objectives is under people's cautious watch. That the government has already broken the stalemate in Indo-Bang-ladesh relations and fetched much needed Ganges waters to Bangladesh by signing a longterm and respectable bilateral agreement is quite refreshing. A lot of reforms like changing the rule of business, forming parliamentary committees without ministerial headship, separating Judiciary from the executive. education reforms, etc., taken in hand by the government are good in principle but to translate them into a reality needs not only utmost honesty, industry and skill but also an unquestionable democratic mind which can go a long way in allaying the much-heaped-up suspicions of the people. Are the ruling party stalwarts and activists behaving in a way different from what their predecessors were guilty of? Have they proved themselves clean of practices of making money by political ploys? The Awami leadership should constantly monitor these things in order to regain people's shattered confidence.

It is not only the politicians who as a class have forfeited people's confidence. Other communities of the society like the teachers, doctors, engineers, lawyers, journalists, etc., have also alienated the faith of the people in no mean degree. Today teaching voyages to tutorial homes, treatment to clinics. Many lawyers fatten their ' Eockets believably on wilful •ngthening and manipulation of cases, many engineers allegedly ensure quality of bribes instead of constructions. Even journalists are often found on the network of gangsters. A lot of these communities have courted membership of national political parties with the ulterior mqtive of achieving personal gajn^, (The "Brain Trust" of the political parties is donned by university ex-VCs. top Journalists, agriculturists, doctors, engineers, etc. It is an irony that while people have so far increasingly and reasonably lost confidence in the politicians. there is hardly left out any other community for them to pin hope on for the future of the country.

The writer is Retd. Principal. Gout. Mohila College. Pabna.