Editorial
Get a hold on the state agencies
The PM must set the tone
Sometimes state agencies step out of their defined terms of reference, which can create havoc for the state. And that can happen under several circumstances. One, if they are left alone to their own devices, or, secondly, if they are used for partisan purposes. And if the agencies happen to be those that are reposed with the responsibility for the security of the state, their actions may spell disaster for the state, if left unchecked.
And we have in hand the examples of two apex intelligence agencies gone awry, either under higher direction or on their own volition, and neither condition speaks much about the capacity of the government of the day to control and direct their functions.
One is greatly distressed to learn the alleged complicity of the two agencies in two most dangerous incidents related to law and order and security of the state, which undoubtedly, had the potential for serious consequence for Bangladesh; the August 21 bomb attack could have created an irrepressible internal upheaval in the country, and had the arms intercepted at Chittagong port found their way to their destination, it would have further destabilised the already unstable eastern neighbourhood of ours, and we would not have been spared the inevitable fallout.
What we have witnessed in the two instances are effects of blatant politicisation of state agencies. It is regrettable that with an already heavily politicised bureaucracy we now have security agencies whose assets had been misused for partisan purposes. And no one seemed to have been concerned about the consequences of such ill advised actions on the state.
We can hardly countenance a situation where those that are supposed to provide security to the state become the cause of its insecurity. And this is perhaps the right time to focus on the intelligence agencies and their operation.
We recall the stance of the PM on politicisation of state machinery while she was in the opposition. Regrettably, there has not been any change in the situation. We would hope that, given the revelations, the matter of employment, direction and control of these agencies would receive the PM's unmitigated consideration.
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