Editorial
We welcome BNP's new position on elections
It is now time for the parties to go to the voters
FINALLY, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party has made a concrete announcement regarding its participation in the general elections. Its readiness to take part in the general elections if they are held on December 28 is a move we at this newspaper are heartened by. We had stated in our editorial yesterday that room was still there for all parties to the issue to arrive at a solution to the crisis. Such a solution now appears to be at hand. The BNP's decision, announced by party chairperson Khaleda Zia on Thursday evening, lifts much of the sense of apprehension that has been there of late. The nation can now surely breathe easier. Even though the decision by the party to go for elections is a belated one and indeed should have come earlier, we feel that the ground has now been smoothened for the polls to be held and for all political parties to make the elections a meaningful exercise aimed at a restoration of government by popular consent. It is in the interest of the country that the elections should now be held in a free, transparent and credible atmosphere.
With the dark clouds hanging over the elections now receding, it is time for the parties to get down to the polls campaign in earnest. That is important, for after all the arguments and counter arguments, et al, that have gone into whether and when the elections can be held, it is the voters that the parties must now turn their attention to. And they can do this through outlining manifestoes and explaining the financial details and implications of the policies they mean to pursue over the next five years. Pious wishes or unattainable programmes are the least of requirements today. The last two years have patently demonstrated the fact that the people are no more willing to put their faith in old platitudes or clichés from the parties but wish to know what concrete programmes they have on offer. It is now time for an end to the kind of drama, some would say melodrama, that has so long been enacted by the politicians and the caretaker government and for politics to be taken to those who, as voters, will actually decide its future course. The parties must feel the pulse of the nation and give it cause to rekindle its faith in democratic politics.
We have already noted a healthy sign of politics regarding party nominations in the Awami League. A good number of old, controversial faces have been denied the party's nomination this time, an act appreciated all over the country. A fairly good number of women have also been given nominations. Let the BNP adopt a similar course, indeed go a step better. By doing so, it will be signalling to the nation that it is ready to pursue the politics of change. As the elections approach, let the participating parties eschew the acrimonious and instead engage in constructive, intellectually stimulating rivalry in their bid to win public support for their programmes.
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