Editorial
Post-verdict BNP politics
Days of old style politics is no more
If ever there was a moment for BNP to introspect and seriously look within for a renewal of their party's politics, the time is now. It is true that the party is in disarray but it will be mistake to think that it has lost its capacity to play a major role in the future politics of Bangladesh. There is no denying that BNP is facing perhaps the most serious crisis in its short but eventful life. But it is a crisis that the party has enough internal strength and public support for it to recover from.
However for that to happen the party must take a deep look into what it purports to represent and how much energy and democratic space will be given by its leader to others to organise the party.
For years now the only slogan BNP proclaimed was that the country's sovereignty was being either threatened or bartered away without ever bothering to explain how. Its main stance during last election was to try to capitalise on the latent anti-India feelings and play the fear factor that AL will barter away our sovereignty. It did not work and the party suffered its severest defeat. It never asked why, and found a scapegoat in the caretaker government and the army for its defeat. That may have served as a face saving device but did nothing either to remove the malaise that caused the party's decline nor inject any fresh idea or leadership that could bring some energy into it. Hence, since the election defeat two years ago the party did nothing to give any new direction to its workers or to the people whose vote it seeks.
On the organisational side it basically stagnated. We all know that the anointed successor, Tareq Rahman, practically runs the party from London (a la MQM party in Pakistan, whose leader runs his party sitting in London), still some new faces should have been put in charge to act on his behalf. Mirza Fakrul who it was expected would be made the secretary general has been kept in the sidelines. The party continues to be faction ridden with each leader vying for Khaleda Zia's favour by maligning others with the chief not being able to take any decision as she does not know who to believe.
However the its main challenge remains formulating a policy that will help galvanise the party anew. Here there appears a serious absence of any new ideas. Its position of "Remove the government now", three years before the mandated term is another sign of bankruptcy as neither BNP or AL has succeeded in forcibly removing the other from power.
The ball is now squarely in Khaleda Zia's court. Hartals are part of the old style politics that has become increasingly unpopular and unacceptable. Absence of cars or people on the road and closed shops only signify fear of property loss and not of public support. Trying to galvanise public support on the house issue looks too personal and with the court's verdict the "expulsion" has acquired a legal status. Resigning en-masse from the parliaments will be BNP's biggest mistake. It will remove one powerful platform from which to point out government's failures.
It is time for BNP to do some serious introspection.
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