The players mean little when the game itself needs changing
Dhaka Tribune October 2022 https://www.dhakatribune.com/opinion/op-ed/295515/everybody-hurts-if-the-winner-takes-it-all
Bangladesh’s next general election might be the last poll where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Begum Khaleda Zia are regarded as the two main contenders.
Over three decades after they co-operated to topple the military dictatorship of General Ershad, the rival leaders continue to dominate political discourse. While the BNP won fewer seats than the Jatiya party in the 2018 election (the fairness of which it and others strongly dispute), the BNP still secured a majority of all the anti-AL votes, with 13% of the total vote compared to the JP’s 5%.
With so much focus on the key players, little attention is ever paid to the game itself.
Partly by legacies from the nation’s colonial past and partly by design, political governance is institutionally built for full spectrum dominance by an all-powerful centre and elites.
In the long run, this undermines the intentions of the constitution and spirit of democracy more than deficiencies in electoral processes and disputed election results.
The prime minister is adamant the AL government has nothing to hide, and that it and the Election Commission will ensure a free and fair election, adding, for good measure, in a recent US interview that she will step down should she lose the next election, saying: “If they don’t want me, I don’t want to remain in power.”
Not surprisingly, the BNP disagrees. It highlights allegations of electoral fraud and the intimidation of opposition candidates and supporters, which form part of the basis of the assessment by Freedom House that Bangladesh is only “partly free” with a notably low score of one out of a possible four points in answer to its question “is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections?”
Equally unsurprisingly, AL supporters highlight Sheikh Hasina’s record on economic growth and development during her long tenure. Certainly, by getting the Padma Bridge built alone — not least in the face of the World Bank’s objections — she ensured a considerable legacy for her government.
They also never miss a chance to point out that Begum Zia’s son, and BNP Vice Chair Tarique Rahman, has been convicted for the Hawa Bhaban plot behind the deadly grenade attacks targeting Sheikh Hasina and killing 24 people in August 2004.
If Bangladesh had American style candidates’ debates, this part alone could make for rather interesting television.
But to paraphrase Ronald Reagan, there we go again. Focusing on personalities and the mechanics of elections rather than the fundamentals of what makes the nation’s democracy dysfunctional. For most people in Bangladesh, does it really matter much which party wins an election?
Both leading parties are, in practice, quite “ideology lite.” In part a virtue — the fabled national characteristic of pragmatism — but also a feature that draws in those whose main motivation is not political principle or bettering the nation.
A winner-takes-all political system does not just harm losing parties alone. It also means a ruling party, of whatever stripe, inevitably attracts the opportunistic and criminally minded.
This can be seen at its most dispiriting in what passes for “student politics.” What should be an arena for the young and idealistic is dominated by those who want to partake in extortion rackets, thuggery, and violence.
In recent years the BNP has talked much of constitutional reform including amending article 70 of the Constitution, which obliges MPs to vote for their political party or have their membership of parliament revoked. However, this is usually said with a proviso that it should not be for finance bills or motions of no-confidence.
As those are precisely the pinch points whereby MPs in Westminster type systems can “cross the floor” or replace prime ministers, it does not take a cynic to think that any talk of “reform” is louder than its intended bite.
Getting the keys to the car seems more of a motivator than improving the way it is driven.
Bangladesh is not alone in having systems which encourage bureaucracies and major political parties to be over-centralized, controlling, and inherently resistant to change. But if fundamental issues like inequality are ever to be adequately addressed, politics needs to become much more inclusive and accountable.
This applies to the way political parties internally manage themselves as well as how the state operates.
Seeing leading parties democratize themselves internally might give reason to hope they could do more to decentralize power and enhance democracy.
It may be fanciful, but imagine either of the two big party leaders setting out succession plans endorsing someone they are not related to, to take over when they retire.
Now that could be a gamechanger.
Ethically Maybe 