Transparency International Bangladesh has let it be known that fair elections are possible under a partisan government. It has also informed citizens that not all elections under the present government have been unfair and therefore unacceptable.
The TIB statement is pretty refreshing for the country, given that it also emphasizes the role of all political parties and individuals in playing their due roles to ensure that elections are held in a free, fair and transparent manner.
We do not argue that the means necessary for the country to graduate to a full democracy are in place. But we will certainly point to the unassailable fact that for far too long the political system in Bangladesh was undermined by successive military regimes and then by their camp followers.
As far as the question of caretaker or interim governments is concerned, they were surely necessary at critical points in the nation's history, in late 1990 and 1996 for instance, for reasons not hard to fathom.
But then comes the question of whether it is politically and morally feasible for every elected government to leave office at the end of its five-year term and hand over power to a caretaker administration that is not elected and therefore is not accountable to the nation.
The Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution saw to it that this undemocratic feature of politics, having outlived its utility, was properly done away with.
But that is not to suggest that national politics is today in a healthy state. It would be naïve to suppose that with the current arrangements in place, elections will be held in the perfection they are supposed to be in a normal democratic system.
What the country needs today is a gigantic degree of commitment, especially from the ruling party, towards convincing the country that the forthcoming elections will be without any blemish and that all parties will have a level playing field in the run-up to the vote.
For the opposition, it is not enough to draw the premature conclusion that the elections will be unfair or will be rigged. It can well mount a vigorous campaign in support of its policies and programs and field candidates who can wage a hard and decent battle for public support at the polling booths.
But all of the above will depend on how decisive or influential the Election Commission is willing to be in the exercise of its constitutional responsibilities.
Like almost every other EC in the past, the present commission too is looked upon with misgivings by the opposition. It is thus an impression the Election Commission should go out on a limb to dispel and convince the country that on its watch no attempts to undermine the credibility of the elections will be tolerated.
There are instances of such commissions in other countries, especially India, which have been playing a purposeful role in conducting elections in a manner that gives little scope to political parties to raise any question of unfairness.
The ruling party, the opposition and the Election Commission need to do their work in a way that expands the democratic space in the country.
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