People are not in a hurry

These days everybody is talking about how to ensure a level playing field for all the political parties and their candidates in the next parliamentary election, whenever it is held. If an election is a game, only a level playing field cannot ensure fairness and success of it. To make it a meaningful and successful game the players have the most important role to play. Players who are addicted to crime, terrorism and corruption cannot make a game of politics like election a success. Such players must be disqualified to participate in an election, as a player in any game is disqualified if s/he is found positive in a dope test. Time necessary for such an arrangement must be allowed to the organisers of the game. We are not at all surprised to see that the top leaders of both the BNP and the AL have already started talking in unison to have the next election within a short time. They do not want to wait to get rid of their corrupt party colleagues. They want to bring their corrupt colleagues back to power again to loot people’s money, grab government lands and indulge in wanton terrorism. So, understandably, they are in a hurry. But if you talk about the common people who are innocent victims of their looting, grabbing and terrorism, after having seen the recently exposed misdeeds of the politicians, they do not want to see the present set of politicians to come to power again. Definitely it is the politicians who will ultimately run the affairs of the state, but not the present set of politicians. The present interim government of Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed must do the needful to get rid of the present condemned set of politicians and help a new generation of honest, efficient, learned and modern politicians to take charge. People are not against politicians. They are against bad politicians who should all be shown red card before the game is restarted. That is the point which all concerned, including our foreign friends and well wishers, should take note of. People are not in a hurry for an election. They want the garbage to be cleaned first by bringing in as many reforms as necessary. Ashraf