& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

And so we voted ...

We did go to the voting centres, that looked nice and safe, not like it used to be in the past during the period of the ''democratic'' governments when the goons of the ruling party used to brandish arms and threaten voters.

Shahnoor Wahid
YEP... so we did, with great hope and hype, great fanfare if you like, but with one eye to the past records of the elected governments, with the unwavering resolve to bring about a change in the future - - a change most needed -- to let sunshine drive away the mist of malaise, to let fresh air clear the stench of the decomposing corpse of corruption that hung around our neck for many, many years, like the dead albatross.
Yes, we did go to the voting centres, that looked nice and safe, not like it used to be in the past during the period of the "democratic" governments when the goons of the ruling party used to brandish arms and threaten voters, especially those belonging to religious minority and ethnic groups.
This time around there was no goon in the vicinity of the polling booths, at least not in tire capital city. Poor goons ... losing "vote banijya" worth millions of takas. No one to shoot point-blank. No one's throat to slit to please the "Boss." And the police and army patrols are making it tough for them to distribute cash money among voters. What a spoilsport! Wiry doesn't anyone show sympathy to us goons? We have to maintain a family, don't we? Now, we shall have to wait for five more years!
Around noon yesterday, people came in
to my room and said that there was very good turnout at the polling booths in the morning. Great sign indeed! That’s exactly what everyone wanted, isn't it! Well, this is the first step towards democracy. Voters will know when to take the next steps. But, let us congratulate the Election Commission (EC), the armed forces and the police for keeping lawand order around the booths.
Yes, there were some problems in finding the number of voters at some places. It took a lot of time in some places to find and tally the names and numbers of voters. In Paltan area, a senior journalist went back home as he saw a long queue moving very slowly. In some places they checked ID cards, but it was not followed everywhere. Many suggested that there should have been an EC staff with the list to find the name pronto.
Oh, talking about distributing money among voters... in other words buying vote with cash. There are reports that brisk business took place in the city slums as well as in other places in the country. Well, it's nothing new. There are always buyers and sellers come election time. So, you can't really stop it totally. And to a person who earns Tk.100 a day, any amount will be gladly taken. But imagine cartons filled with nearly Tk 42 lakh brought in to buy votes! We came to know about it since the man carrying the money was caught red-
handed. But what about incidences going un-reported! Joyotu blackmoney!
Now, let us turn our attention to the young, first time voters. What have they done? What was their choice? I personally know many of them...excited as they were...but mostly confused, as they knew very little about the candidates, their antecedents...their dedication....their pledges...their credibility. A large number of the young voters followed the instruction of their parents or that of some influential uncle in the family. This should not happen next time. They must take the trouble of doing their homework and then go to cast their votes. A lot depends on them. This is not the occasion to blindly follow someone, however close he or she may be.
But, what was most encouraging about the young voters was their unanimous rejection of the war criminals and religious
fanatics in the polls. Some of them might, get elected by the vote of their blind sup- , porters but the young generation has learned plenty by now about the horrendous acts of genocide perpetrated by these * people in 1971. The good news is, the young generation is beginning to be proud of the, history of our War of Liberation and wants, to know more.
We all have received fantastic SMSs in the past two days haven't we? Vote for^ this...vote for that...vote for him...vote fork her...and so on. I have received many tooT but the most interesting one was sent by senior journalist Anwarul Haque. It read"' like this: 'Vote for Al-BNP alliance and? abandon Jamaat and JP. Thoughtprovoking, ain't it?
Snahrow Wahid is a Senia Assistant E*a of The Daiy Star Hecan be contacted a! shahnooc*anid ©yahoo co.uk