Editorial
Advisor's comments on media unfortunate
Culture of denial is no way to handle problems
We are surprised at the characterisation of the September 17 incidents in Pabna as a media exaggeration by prime ministerial advisor H.T. Imam. He has indicted the media for what he calls making an issue of the sobbing which government officers resorted to when, in his view, no such emotional scenes took place. The advisor clearly misses the point, which is that there is much more involved here than the tears of those who came under assault by ruling party activists bent on preventing a recruitment of employees in the DC office that was not to their liking. That the office of the Pabna deputy commissioner was attacked, that his officers were assaulted by these elements is the glaring truth. That is what ought to have been the focus of the advisor's attention. Instead, he has conveniently tried to zero in on the doings of the media rather than on the interference in administration by ruling party followers.
We believe, like so many others across the country, that this unhealthy culture of media bashing every time the newspapers and television channels report misdemeanours committed by those claiming to be close to the powers that be should come to an end. We have observed with dismay a growth of the culture of denial and disowning that can in the long run have a very adverse effect on national politics. While HT Imam has sidled away from the real issues involved here, minister of state for home affairs Shamsul Haque Tuku has claimed that those who carried out the attacks were not involved with the Awami League. Such a claim is not only saddening but plainly assailable because it takes the culture of denial another step lower. Again, the main point is being lost: whoever the criminals may be, is it not the responsibility of the government to act fast and effectively in nabbing them and thereby convincing the nation that governance is on track?
The prime minister's advisor has suggested that such media reports as have emanated in the light of the Pabna affair in the end damage the image of the administration. We differ with his assessment, for two very good reasons. The first is that it is the moral and professional responsibility of the media to highlight the truth, however unpleasant that truth may be to some, before the nation. The second is that the image of an administration is damaged considerably when those responsible for ensuring its smooth functioning are reluctant or powerless to keep their partisan followers from interfering with it. In Pabna, the government should have taken a serious view of the activities of the local lawmaker involved rather than resort to a patch-up of sorts.
Finally, we think that the fallout from the Pabna incident of September 17 could have been averted if the authorities had acted swiftly against those who let loose that reign of terror in the examination halls. By trying to explain away the situation, the government has only been getting caught in newer and tighter knots. It has not helped the situation any.
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