National election: The sooner the better

The people of this land, now known as Bangladesh, have always been freedom-loving and democratic. However, their yearning for freedom and democracy has faced many challenges and been suppressed throughout history, it has never been obliterated by any force, be it domestic or foreign, though. They fought against and defeated many powerful occupations and toppled many authoritarian regimes.

The people have never collectively made wrong decisions in their critical times. They once liberated Pakistan from the British colonial empire and again fought for their rights to self-determination, giving rise to Bangladesh as an independent country.

In Bangladesh, they ousted autocrats and initiated democratic journeys all over again several times, most notably in 1991. However, they had been deceived by their rulers every time but kept their longing for democracy alive for good by continuing their enduring struggles. Thus, they wrote another chapter of their valiant history by ousting the cruellest dictator in their national history in 2024.

Unfortunately, this time too, their sacrifices and blood are about to go in vain. Many have already started to fear that this interim regime has also been following the suit of other governments formed in the wake of mass uprisings in the past.

This regime has come to power at the cost of around 1,400 lives who embraced martyrdom to set the nation free from the grip of the cruellest despot of the country. In the wake of assuming office, this regime pledged to bring all the culprits complicit in the killing of these people to book, bring about a sweeping reform to eradicate all the elements of fascism, and hold a free, fair, and credible election to hand over the power to an elected and democratic government.

The interim government has reiterated these three goals as its main focus many times during the last nine months. The people of Bangladesh have also extended their hands towards the government to realise these goals, resulting in the regime achieving some successes.

Over the first goal of bringing the killers to justice, this government has prosecuted several dignitaries of the deposed regime. However, it has failed to stop the main accused from fleeing the country, let alone arrest them, frustrating the countrymen.

When it comes to the reform, the people have started to believe that the government has been walking at a snail's pace since the very beginning. It has formed several commissions, and they have already submitted their recommendations, but the government seems to be dilly-dallying in implementing the recommendations, only spicing up the mistrust of the people and political parties over the intention of this regime to prolong its tenure.

Much to the disappointment of many, the government has not even taken any visible and effective steps to reform the quota system that triggered the mass uprising and eventually put it in power. The countrymen also expected that this government would punish those who faked freedom fighter certificates to get jobs for the last 16 years, depriving many meritorious and qualified job aspirants. However, the government has finished its duty in this regard by just asking for related information from those who have been recruited from the quota. 

Over the election, the interim government has formed an election commission, but no election commissioner or chief election commissioner has yet been held accountable for their actions during the last 16 years. The commission’s officers at the field level, who executed Sheikh Hasina's plans during the elections in 2014, 2018, and 2024, are also still in office without facing any investigations or departmental actions.

There is no denying how this government has been sorting out one after another protest without applying force is unprecedented and a lesson for any government in the future. However, its control on administration appears to be weaker than ever before in the history of Bangladesh, and the public perception that almost all sectors of the country have been occupied by corrupt officials continues to grow.

People cannot but get upset when they see the news of the government's indifference to the treatment of those who have been injured in establishing this government. They get worried to see that those who had been punished for genuine irregularities and corruption during the previous fascist regime have bagged lucrative posts after this government assumed office. These corrupt officials used their punishment to prove that they were penalised and deprived during the fascist regime for their political beliefs that went against the political and ideological line of that regime. 

Furthermore, the indifference of the incumbent regime to roll out a specific road map for the election, though it has reiterated that the 30th of June would be its last day in office, leading people to believe that it would like to prolong its power but not hold a free and fair election. The news of corruption involving some advisors of this government and leaders of the National Citizen Party (NCP),  considered to be the king’s party, has also eroded the trust of the countrymen in this regime.

I think this regime has failed to feel the pulse of the people. It falsely feels confident and self-content by witnessing huge rallies supporting some of their moves at times. However, this is not a true reflection of public opinion, as larger rallies for those in power have never been a big deal in this country.

In fact, people are getting disheartened by seeing no real progress in the reform and the trials of the killers. They cannot even see any evidence of the pure intention of the government to hold an election. They have been doubtful of the government and are losing interest in the trials and reforms. And they have felt betrayed once again, just like after every mass upheaval in the past, by the government.

Against such a backdrop, the demand for the election has been growing among people from all walks of life. Although nobody can guarantee that the next elected government will not dismay the countrymen again, people believe that after the democratic transition, they will have at least a way to hold that government accountable, even to change it, if needed. Therefore, the interim government must focus on holding the election and the sooner the better.

- Md Enamul Hassan is a Bangladeshi journalist and columnist now based in England.