The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The major political parties of the country are manifestly taking part in the city corporation and pourashava elections.

At certain places they have set candidates under the party banner and at others in a non-descript manner. It is a departure from their announced policy of abstaining from any election held under emergency. Not only Awami League but also BNP is putting partisan candidates without formally admitting the fact that they are taking part in the elections.

Under the local government election rules political parties cannot directly participate in the local government elections.

Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) in its latest observation said, the ongoing dialogue between the Government and the political parties is going to be counter productive. At a seminar, held in the city, organized by the Sujon, a NGO, Prof Muzzafer Ahmed, Chairman of TIB, observed that the activities of the political parties regarding the up-coming City Corporation and pourasava polls are opposed to the spirit of the Constitution and the pourasava and city corporation regulations. According to the Constitution, the local Government elections are non-party ones. The key political parties have set candidates in the mayoral polls who are holding party positions in their respective districts.

The 14-party candidates for mayoral polls are Talukder Abdul Khaleque (Khulna), Shawkat Hossain Hiron (Barisal), Badaruddin Ahmed Kamran (Sylhet) are out and out partisan political activists in their respective districts.

Apparently local government polls are heavily infested by political parties as observers hint, are being dictated by their leaders either from inside the jail or from outside the country. Virtually political parties are setting candidates from their party headquarters in Dhaka at the behest of their supreme leader.

The political leaders said they were warming up for the national elections likely to be held at the end of the year. The local Government poll is a prelude to the national election. The Election Commission said, under the present legal framework they were handicapped to deal with the situation.

Dhaka based politics seems to be vibrant centring around the local Government polls. The local Government polls supposed to be localized ones. But the candidates are being informally set from the party headquarters. The policy making body in Dhaka of each political party is holding meeting one after another for nominating partisan elements.

The City Corporation and pourasava polls scheduled to be held on August 4 are non political in character. The use of political party offices is also prohibited under the rules.

Prof Muzaffer said, the political parties appeared to have taken it as a dress rehearsal for the coming national polls. After winning the election, they will deny the graft charge filed against them, he said.

By the way, Badaruddin Kamran, former mayor of Sylhet, who is under detention under graft charge has also been nominated by Awami, League to contest the upcoming mayoral election of the Sylhet city. Fighting election from detention is an attempt to win sympathy of the voters on the one hand and if elected then to obviously prove himself innocent from the graft charges on the other hand.

The 14 party leaders in their meeting in Dhaka took much trouble to sort out their differences while selecting their candidates. Even their leader Zillur Rahman, Tofail Ahmed, Amir Hossain Amu, Rashed Khan Menon, Bimol Bishwas held closed door meeting at the Ivi Tower to minimise their differences.

The essence and spirit of the much talked about political reform is that the candidates of local government elections are to be selected by the local units of the parties but not on party-line. That principle appears to have been ignored altogether.