Caretaker dilemma in Bangladesh

 After emergence of Bangladesh in 1971, the country witnessed a number of coups and counter coups and a succession of military rulers. After overthrow of General Ershad’s military regime in 1990 following mass upsurge, all the leading political and civil society leaders as well as intellectuals of the country reached a consensus and unanimously decided to organize general elections under supervision of a non-party caretaker government to usher in democracy. Thus Caretaker government system came into being as a way to put an end to frequent military take-overs and usher in democracy in the country. This system which lasted for 15 years held four elections in 1991, 1996, 2001 and 2008.

The decision to do away with the caretaker government has been taken through the 15^th Constitution Amendment in mid 2011 following the Supreme Court verdict that declared the 13^th Constitution Amendment incorporating the provision of Caretaker Government to oversee parliamentary elections illegal. 

Prime Minster Sk Hasina who is currently on a visit to the UK said that the next general elections in her country will follow the Westminster system which is considered a role model for all parliamentary democracies. During a meeting with the British Secretary of State William Hague she said her government has strengthened all democratic institutions including the Election Commission as it believes that achieving development of a nation will not be possible without uninterrupted democracy. “There will be no unconstitutional administration”, she remarked.

But BNP and its allies have been demanding restoration of caretaker government reiterating that they will never participate in a parliamentary election under the Awami League (AL)-led government. They have been alleging that the incumbent will manipulate the poll in its own favor. The argument being put forward in support of their demand is that Caretaker Government is neutral and it is foolproof against extra-constitutional take-overs.

People of the country still remember what the last BNP-led regime did in the name of establishing Caretaker government. Khaleda Zia’s government had extended the retirement age of the Supreme Court judges to ensure one particular judge could become head of the Caretaker government. Her chosen Election Commissioner had gifted the country a voters list that carried names of 13 million non-existing voters. One has to look at what transpired from 2006 to 2008 immediately after the BNP-led Alliance Government completed its tenure and handed over power to a so-called Caretaker Government that maintained covert affiliations with the BNP. The primary reason for political turmoil during this period was the fact that Iyajuddin Ahmed, then Chief Advisor to the Caretaker Government, was functioning as BNP’s agent and the poll-time administration headed by him was working primarily to facilitate BNP’s return to power through a stage-managed election in January 2007. This led to Army intervention resulting in military take-over of the Caretaker Government. This also led to unfortunate halt to Bangladesh’s democratic governance and an Army-backed undemocratic regime clinging on to power for two long years.

All these brought into focus glaring deficiencies of the Caretaker Government system and served as a setback to democratic progression that engulfed the country in deep political crisis.

To press for restoration of poll-time administration as a pre-requisite to their participation in the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled to be held in late 2013 or early 2014 by the Election Commission, the BNP-led opposition has been mounting pressure on the Government by frequently enforcing country-wide shut-downs and resorting to violent means, vandalizing vehicles and state owned properties and attacking law enforcers. They have been terrorizing the country to bring back the non-democratic Caretaker government in the country. Moreover, they have also been refusing to be party to any kind of parleys to find out an alternative to the issue.

The last BNP-led regime was termed a ‘brutal kleptocracy’ by the Economist magazine. It is indeed ironic that Khaleda Zia has now been shedding crocodile tears for establishment of Caretaker government but people of the country have not forgotten that it was she who presided over holding of the just democratized country’s most shameful one party election on 15 February 1996.

Bangladesh hardly needs a caretaker government to oversee its parliamentary elections. Political leaders of the country are mature enough and can dispense with the supervision of an un-elected caretaker government. Moreover, no other truly democratic country in the world has such a strange system of un-elected government to oversee election.

Caretaker Government is itself undemocratic as it is a selected government and not formed by people’s representatives. As it is undemocratic it cannot save democracy in the long run. It was introduced as a temporary arrangement to usher in democracy in the country after the fall of Gen Ershad’s military regime; it can in no way contribute in consolidating democracy in the country.

What are the essentials for a free and fair election in any country? Apart from an independent Election Commission responsible for all aspects of conducting this nation-wide exercise, .other requirements are law courts, the High Court and the Supreme Court. Moreover there should be neutral watchdogs and above all, a vast, vibrant and vigorous media.    

Whenever general elections are held in any country, there are neutral election observers, including foreign teams, to oversee the election process. Credibility of elections depends on their reports. The new government is then formed for a period of five years with all powers over the whole country. The same government, whose coming to power was deemed constitutional and lawful, can not suddenly become untrustworthy and unfit to undertake what is its last and final lawful act, constitutionally imposed, to arrange and hold the general elections in the country and hand over power to the people’s representatives.

Another factor that cannot be ignored in this context is that there is no guarantee that this poll-time administration, supposed to be the only panacea for a perceived problem, would not itself become a more vicious problem as it did happen in 2007 when an Army- backed caretaker government seized power in Bangladesh. This so-called caretaker government which ruled Bangladesh for two years with an iron hand was de-facto Army rule under the cover of caretaker government and it undermined all democratic norms and institutions in the country.

What Bangladesh needs for consolidating democracy is not a Caretaker government but a truly independent and strong Election Commission which is a pre-requisite for free and fair elections to save democracy.

During the last four and a half years of the AL-led government, more than 6000 elections including bye-election, election to local bodies and city corporation elections have been held. No serious objections or allegations of electoral malpractices have been raised from any quarters. The opposition BNP-backed candidates have won many of these elections. The Election Commission which is now an independent body held these elections in keeping with its own rules without any government interference. There are absolutely no reasons to believe that the Election Commission will not be able to hold free and fair elections by creating a level playing field for all.