The 10th of January has special significance for Bangladesh. We welcomed back to a free nation the leader who had inspired its citizens to fight for independence. It was on this day in 1972 that the Father of the Nation, President Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman returned to his country to take on the difficult task of reconstruction of its war-devastated socio-economic paradigm. We were fortunate that we had him and his colleagues to guide us through that most difficult period. Their activity demonstrated the significance of good governance and democracy.A victory for good governance and democracy
The print and the electronic media reported that unlike previous elections in Narayanganj there was no chase, counter-chase, attacks and examples of vote rigging. There have also been assertions by attending election observers that the
election was free, fair and credible
Muhammad Zamir
The 10th of January has special significance for Bangladesh. We welcomed back to a free nation the leader who had inspired its citizens to fight for independence. It was on this day in 1972 that the Father of the Nation, President Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman returned to his country to take on the difficult task of reconstruction of its war-devastated socio-economic paradigm. We were fortunate that we had him and his colleagues to guide us through that most difficult period. Their activity demonstrated the significance of good governance and democracy.
One was reminded of those critical moments during this past month of Victory which brought a fitting end to an eventful 2016. The Narayanganj City Corporation (NCC) demonstrated once again on 22nd December that the citizens of this country can, if they so wish, participate in an electoral process and prove that democracy exists within the framework of this country.
We had seen many expressions of doubt from different quarters prior to this election. It had also been suggested by some that politicization among the Officials involved with the election would negate the chance of a free and fair poll. Others had mentioned that the law enforcement authorities would exercise their powers negatively to the detriment of candidates who were not associated with the ruling Party- the Awami League. There were also comments from certain quarters that candidates not associated with the Awami League would not be able to carry out their campaign peacefully and that political workers from the Awami League would use force to affect their campaign. There were also some who remarked that supporters of candidates not belonging to the Awami League would have difficulty in coming to the polling stations and exercising their right to vote. Fortunately for Narayanganj and for Bangladesh, there was some tension but such anxiety and concern was proven wrong.
It would be useful to refer here to some important statistics as provided by the Election Commission. The total number of voters for the NCC election was 4, 74,931. The total number of General Wards within the NCC was 36 of which 27 were of the general category and 9 were of reserved category. The total number of polling centres was 174. These centres had 1,304 polling booths. Out of these centres, 137 were classified by the Election Commission as being of a risky nature. The Election Commission, aware of possible disorder took the step of deploying about 9,500 members of the law enforcement agencies to maintain law and order. That included representatives from the Police, the Border Guard Bangladesh, the Rapid Action battalion, Coast Guard and Ansar.
There were a total number of 7 Mayoral Contestants and 156 Councillor Contestants. The important element in this whole exercise was the fact that the electoral process was participated by several political parties including the two important political parties- the Awami League as well as the Bangladesh Nationalist Party. The other interesting aspect was the fact that the candidates for the post of Mayor participated in the election with their Party symbol. In the case of the AL, it was the Boat and for the BNP it was a Sheaf of Paddy. This was done to attract respective Party followers to their desired candidate.
Selina Hayat Ivy was the candidate for Mayor from the ruling Party- the Awami League. Advocate Sakhawat Hossain Khan was the Mayoral candidate from the BNP. It may be also mentioned here that the candidate from the main Opposition Party in the Parliament- the Jatiyo Party dropped out of the race and indicated support for the Awami League candidate. Similarly, the candidates from the Liberal Democratic Party and the Bangladesh Kalyan Party dropped out of the race and extended their support for the BNP candidate.
At the end of the day, it was announced that the election process had been participated by 2, 96,036 voters casting their vote (about 62.33%). Selina Hayat Ivy was re-elected to the Office of Mayor for another five years after receiving 1, 75,611 votes as opposed to Sakhawat Hossain Khans 96,044 votes. Other candidates for the post of Mayor from other political parties received all together about24, 380 votes. This reflected the confidence of the people of Narayanganj in her abilities and in her honesty as a politician. Awami League supported candidates won in 13 Wards while those with BNPs endorsement won in 12. The Jatiyo Party and the Socialist Party of Bangladesh also won one post of Councillor each. Within the reserved seats category, Awami League won six seats while the rest three went to BNP backed contestants.
In this context it would be important to note that the print and the electronic media reported that unlike previous elections in Narayanganj there was no chase, counter-chase, attacks and examples of vote rigging. There have also been assertions by attending election observers that the election was free, fair and credible. There was however a suggestion from the BNP losing candidate Sakhawat Hossain Khan that there might have been some errors in the counting process. A senior official of the BNP while giving his views on the results indicated that the relevant authorities might consider undertaking a judicial review of the electoral process to ascertain if any wrong-doing or vote tampering had taken place. Nevertheless, no political party rejected the result of the election. This was indeed an important step forward.
One must admit that Mayor Ivy made a wise move immediately after the election. That reflected sagacity. She visited Sakhawat Hossains residence with sweets after her victory was confirmed. Some interpreted this as her way of consoling the loser. There was however the other dimension. One must not overlook the fact that her presence enabled her also to seek her opponents pledge to work together with her for the welfare of the people of Narayanganj. This was indeed a good move and a positive gesture. One can only hope that such graciousness would be reflected in other future post-election scenarios. Her post-victory celebration, quite fittingly, also included her calling on the Prime Minister in her residence and thanking her for nominating her as the Awami League candidate and reposing her confidence on her possible re-election to the post of Mayor. These two steps, in my opinion have now raised her to the national level as a politician.
This latest NCC election has proved beyond doubt that our Election Commission, if it wants to and also receives full cooperation from all the relevant Agencies, can hold a free, fair and credible election. The NCC poll was an overt opportunity for the Election Commission to regain the required credibility that had eroded over the past five years. It was good to see that they seized the opportunity. This has also consequently opened up a new positive paradigm.
It would also be appropriate to acknowledge that such a peaceful election has also been possible due to the good intentions (as noted by some Observers) of the law enforcers to act properly in the absence of political pressure and influence. Media reported that members of the Police, RAB and BGB were very active since early morning on the day of the election to maintain the law and order situation and ensure a healthy election atmosphere. Such a development has only re-affirmed that contrary to claims by the BNP, fair and credible elections can be held under a political government- as is done throughout the world.
One must note here three other aspects. The first is the commitment and attitude shown by the Mayoral candidates while they were canvassing their positions on issues in the weeks before the election. That was a lesson in grassroots political inter-active engagement. Mayor Ivy had a distinct advantage in this regard having been in charge of the Corporation for the past five years and also before that as head of this Institution when its status was that of a Municipality. The second important factor was the winners connectivity with the female voting population. The media reported that women voters in particular, turned up in great numbers and waited for long hours to vote for her. That underlined the fact that the winner had made quite a bit of effort during her previous term in Office to look after their needs. The third element that emerged from the electoral exercise was that despite the large gap in numbers related to the election of the Mayor, the BNP did very well with regard to election to the post of Councillors. That demonstrated that they still retain some of their grassroots support. They need to have more faith in themselves, in the existing political process and engage with their supporters within the rural matrix. They need to do this instead of relying on outside support from foreign friends. This has assumed particular importance given the fact that the next parliamentary election is only a little more than two
years away. Boycotting the next general election would be a major mistake.
The NCC poll has been a victory for democracy and for that, the present government deserves thanks. It has reiterated the belief upheld by Bangabandhu after his return to Bangladesh on 10th January, 1972. However, this has only been the first step. This has also raised expectations among the citizens. One can only hope that in the coming weeks it will be positively reflected in the complex process of selecting the suitable relevant Officials and reconstituting the next Election Commission. If all concerned actors in this exercise, play their desired role with confidence, we will then have a future free from intrigue, violence and negative branding of our country.
Muhammad Zamir, a formerambassador, is an analyst specialised in foreign affairs,right to information and goodgovernance. He can be reached at [email protected]
