The death of Mr. Kibria: Ruling coalition must explain

While the opposition specializes in occupying streets with its picketers breaking cars and throwing crackers at Rickshaw pullers and pedestrians, shutting down factories to register their protest, the ruling coalition relentlessly resort to using clubs on protestors. Today no other third world country has such street level violence on a regular basis like that of Bangladesh, not even Pakistan otherwise famously known as haven for terrorists. There has been an all round lack of political wisdom, management, and farsightedness on the part of both the ruling coalition and the opposition. Both the opposition and the ruling coalition appear to have one single agenda. While the opposition wishes to topple the government at any cost, the government likewise is determined to cling to the seat of power come what may. In all this, the "people" who neither subscribe to the opposition nor the ruling coalition and their style of operations in any sphere of their political management, continue to be used, abused, and held as hostages. Both the opposition and the government continue to make fools of this largest segment of the country's population. Things have been so bad of late that people of all shades of opinion often recall the "good old days" of the Ershad era with nostalgia!

Such is the legacy of our politics and political management in brief. The current state however has surpassed all previous records. The Habiganj carnage and the death of Mr. Kibria stands out as one of the blackest day in the life of our nation to date. The ruling coalition is obligated to the nation to carry out a full and thorough enquiry into the incident, bring the culprits to book and above all making the result of the investigation public. It is indeed outrageous to see in the electronic media that a cabinet meeting is in progress (with no less than the PM presiding) with the faces of each participant looking as though it is business as usual and nothing had happened. No less than the general secretary of the ruling party makes a brief appearance with a lingering smile through the corner of his lips announcing the government's determination to "catch the culprits" and punish them, an all too familiar rhetoric. No more post facto display of so called sympathies to the members of bereaved families assassinated through terrorist attacks.

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Why could not the PM visit the house of late Mr. Kibria on the day of the occurrence or at least appear in the electronic media condemning the attack and at the same time seek people's co-operation in checking the spate of such bomb attacks including co-operation in free and fair conducting of the enquiry leading to identifying and capture of the culprits? By not doing so she has not only lowered her image in the eyes of the general members of the public, but also implanted doubts in their minds as to the sincerity of her coalition government.

If the opposition is failing to uphold the legacy of democratic traditions, the ruling coalition has made a mockery of it all. The ruling coalition also needs to explain as to how two of the most recent major bombings happened to have targeted major opposition rallies only. To say that the ruling party could not have been involved in such acts knowing fully well that this would reflect badly on them and also particularly at this time when the Saarc summit is knocking at the door does not clear its name automatically. The contention has to be proved beyond doubt.

This logic by the speaker that an obituary reference could not be made on the floor of the parliament before the speech of the president is not tenable. Legal implications or provision of the constitution aside, an obituary reference could be held before the speech of the president. One way would have been be to call for an emergency session of the parliament right on the day of the occurrence only to pass the obituary reference. Clearly the ruling coalition is complacent, suffers from inertia, or simply does not care.

The author is a frequent contributor to The Daily Star