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BENEATH THE SURFACE

Right time to vote rightly

They will have to decide whether they want to see a peaceful and prosperous Bangladesh in the next five years, or a Bangladesh rocked by the onslaughts of fundamentalists, goons and guns. The choice is hard, but it is heartening that the people of this country hardly made mistakes at crucial junctures.

Abdul Bayes
COUNTING down, December 29 is just a few hours away. Other things remaining the same, the nation will have a newly elected government to run the country for the next five years. No doubt, this is a much-awaited general election for reasons already known. An elected government is not necessarily a democratic government, but election is a sufficient condition for democracy.
Unfortunately, for more than half the period of our nationhood we had been ruled by autocratic regimes that robbed the freedom of the people to choose their own representatives. Disconcertingly, we noticed that even the elected governments attempted to weaken the democratic institutions.
The upcoming election has generated high expectations among commoners, civil
society members and other stake-holders in the society. Bangladeshis are economically poor, but possibly not so in terms of political awareness and expectations. This has been demonstrated time and again --from the language movement to independence, to the fight against autocratic rule, etc. However, we can pit the expectations of the people against three scenarios.
First, it is expected that the election will be free, fair and neutral. As a recent Prothom Alo report shows, in the 2001 general election, the number of votes cast exceeded the number of voters in many centers, thus tilting the balance against a particular political party. The role of money and muscle in the past elections also ran contrary to our expectations. The people of Bangladesh can only hope that this time, significant improvements will be visible.
Second, it is expected that honest, proliberation and dedicated forces will be
elected to the Parliament. That needs a recommendation of a panel of candidates from the grassroots level activists. Unfortunately, however, only Awami League seems to have adhered to that principle espoused by the EC. It is, thus, not surprising that the other major political party took the advantage of nominating the "old guards" — with much of its menace. However, it must be admitted that a large number of new faces are contesting, and voters can choose from among them.
Third, there are fears about post-election chaos that leads to killings, burnings and rape, especially of minorities and vulnerable groups. At no time in the history of Bangladesh did such atrocities reach the height of post-election 2001. We can only hope that the present government will take serious note of post - election security for all sections, especially for the minorities and the vulnerable segments.
The final expectation hovers around the hew government that will be at the helm of the country's administration very soon. This time, the incumbent will face more formidable challenges than any other government (with the exception of the first government of Bangladesh). The reasons are not far to seek
First, the international economic scenario, as it is today, will call for some radical policy actions and institutional rearrangements to meet global challenges. Although the impacts are yet to adversely affect Bangladesh, preparations should be afoot
to seize upon opportunities. It is expected that taskforces will be constituted sectorwise to point out problems and suggest policy options.
Second, on the domestic front, stabilising the prices of essentials will be the number one challenge for the new government.
Third, maintaining law and order will be a big challenge for the new administration.
Fourth, voters expect that the new government will gift good governance that encompasses independence of the judiciary, ACC and PSC, and an efficient bureaucracy. The expectation is that every crisis can be contained provided the government acts impartially with a sense of political commitment.
While the expectations are there, it is the people who will have to select the candi-dates/parties capable of meeting their expectations. They will have to decide whether they want to see a peaceful and prosperous Bangladesh in the next five years, or a Bangladesh rocked by the onslaughts of fundamentalists, goons and guns.
The choice is hard, but it is heartening that the people of this country hardly made mistakes at crucial junctures. We suggest that war criminals, corrupts, terrorists and fundamentalists should never be sent to the parliament. This is the bottom line for our survival this time.
Abdul Ba/« ts a Prc'essor of Economics at Manyrag#
Urwemty E-mail. abdufoayes^yahoo com