Awami League’s search for general secretary

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is the most experienced and wise politician in Bangladesh. She has surpassed everyone else in prudence long ago. Her every word is valuable and has a deep meaning. On Monday (April 11), Sheikh Hasina said, "We are not getting a strong opposition party." She said, "There are two opposition parties". Both were built by military dictators. They have no acceptance to people. She made the remarks while exchanging views with officials at the Prime Minister's Office. Opposition parties in Bangladesh are sick, almost dead. The main opposition party in parliament is the Jatiya Party. But the party is now on life support after the death of its founder Hussein Muhammad Ershad. Leaders and workers are confused about the ideals and goals of the party. It goes without saying that this party has no activities outside the parliament. The main opposition party outside the parliament is the BNP. This party is without leadership and lost. The party in crisis of existence does not know exactly what it is doing. Once they say that the next election will not go without a non-partisan neutral caretaker government. It is also raising the demand of the national government. A few days ago, the secretary general of the party said that if he wins the election, a national government will be formed. Well, who will be the Prime Minister of the national government? The official head of the BNP is Begum Khaleda Zia. Sentenced to 17 years in prison in two cases. Far from being the Prime Minister, she cannot be a candidate in the National Assembly elections. She is spending his days in 'Firoza' on bail with the grace of the government. The second main leader of the BNP is a fugitive in London. This leader was also sentenced to life imprisonment in a case. He was sentenced to seven years in prison for money laundering. In this situation he is also ineligible for election. There is no possibility that he will come to the country and take part in election. Therefore, his wish to become the Prime Minister is not being fulfilled for the time being. But for the sake of argument, even if we assume that the BNP will win the next election, then who will be the Prime Minister? BNP leaders do not know the answer to this question. The BNP now knows very well that in this situation, whether the BNP goes to the polls or not is the same. So they want to create a situation, not an election. They want to create an unusual and different context in the country and civil society has to be made interested in creating such situation. There are various complaints to be made in western countries. The BNP is doing that. They are carrying various allegations in the country and abroad. They are going to the United States and complaining. Using the social media to spread rumors. Went to the Anti-Corruption Commission few days ago and complained. The BNP's target is to create a negative situation at any cost. That is why once the Chinese BNP secretary general saw the dream of Chinese revolution in Bangladesh. At the Iftar party of the Indian High Commission, they asked for their favor with kindness. The main goal of a political party is to come to power. To implement the policy and ideology of the party by forming the government and the only way to come to power in a democracy is through elections. There is no legitimate way to power without winning the election. But BNP's politics is not election-oriented. After the 2018 elections, the BNP participated several by-elections and local government elections. And then he suddenly said, 'I will not play' and withdrew themselves from the election. The party made two decisions about those who participated individually. The winners were kept in the team the losers were expelled from the team. Lately, the acting secretary general of the party is intoxicated with the expulsion of the popular leaders of the party. A political party is governed by a constitution. But in the BNP the constitution is cared little. If a leader seemed rude in the morning, he is terminated in the evening. No reasoned notice, no discussion in the party forum. Nothing. There is only one king in the BNP, all the rest are slaves. There may be a study on whether the BNP can be called a political party now.

Bangladesh's leftist political parties are suffering from disease. When the Awami League formed the government in 2009 and started the trial of war criminals, I was optimistic about the Leftists Awakening. Especially after the Ganajagaran Mancha in Shahbag, the lamp of hope was lit in me. But a group of leftists are now hungry for power. Others are wandering in a maze of confusion. There is no chance for the Leftist to emerge as an opposition party in Bangladesh. However, there is a silent rise of right-wing extremist fundamentalists in Bangladesh. All in all, the politics of Bangladesh is now without opposition parties.

The general calculation of political science is that if the opposition party is weak then the ruling party is also weak. Which creates a political vacuum. Politics also needs opposition just like it takes two teams in a playing field. Awami League has been almost unrivaled in the politics of Bangladesh since 2014. And that's why politicians are now on the sidelines. The bureaucracy is everywhere. Secretary from Upazila Nirbahi Officer. Secretariat from the grassroots. Politicians have become unimportant everywhere. The ruling Awami League is also unaccountable as there is no political opposition. Since there is no opponent, Awami League is now the opponent of Awami League. Chhatra League is fighting with themselves. One side of the Awami League is hiring terrorists to kill the other side. Everywhere the Awami League is spreading slander or fighting against the Awami League. The chain of command of the party has been broken. The younger leaders are abusing the senior leaders of the party. Complaints of committee trade, nomination trade are now openly discussed. Opposition parties are weak, but is the ruling Awami League strong enough? This question may arise. Awami League has only one place of hope and that is Sheikh Hasina. Because of Sheikh Hasina, the Awami League has been in power for three consecutive terms and dreams of staying in power for the fourth term. If we analyze the Awami League with a little despair, then we will see that the Awami League is also afflicted with the disease. If Sheikh Hasina is separated, Awami League is like a lost boat. The biggest strength of the Awami League is the grassroots. But the grassroots are now eroding. The intruders, the hybrids, have gradually taken over the grassroots. The leaders of the affiliated organizations are no longer in politics, but in business, tenders and various trades. Businessmen, garment owners have surpassed politicians behind in the race to become MPs. Sheikh Hasina alone has become a symbol of unity and ideology. At one time there were many leaders in the Awami League. The Awami League was also remarkable in the opposition. Johra Tajuddin, Abdus Samad Azad, Begum Sajeda Chowdhury, Abdur Razzak, Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed, Mohammad Nasim. But now, except for Sheikh Hasina how many leaders are there to whom people can appeal to? Just like the wounds of the body are not visible if you are wearing suit-pants, the bleeding of Awami League has been covered by the turn of power. For Bangladesh, for the people of this country, it is important for the Awami League to survive as a strong, people-friendly political party. The Awami League is the only party of the poor marginalized people of this country. The Awami League is a party of peasants, workers, fishermen, weavers and laborers. Therefore, keeping the Awami League steadfast in its ideology is necessary for the interest of the hard working people of this country. There are so many opportunists, miscreants in the Awami League today that they can take over the Awami League at any time. They are not able to do it only because of Sheikh Hasina. For this the Awami League must remain strong. 

Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman despised power for the party, for the people. Bangabandhu realized the dream of emancipation of Bengalis through Awami League. For this reason, he left the ministry and chose the post of Awami League general secretary. When the government and the party become one, the selfish people enter the party in the hope of getting various demands. Sheikh Hasina also understands that very well. That is why she has been separating the party and the government in the last few councils. She is making a bold and intelligent decision to keep the party leaders away from the government. However, this culture has also been introduced in the political parties of other democratic countries as well. If the government and the party do not separate, the party will suffer in the end. Becomes deviant. In India, the ruling BJP Prime Minister is Narendra Modi. But party president Jagat Prakash Nadda is not one of the government. And BL Santosh is the general secretary of the party. On July 15, 2019, he took over as the general secretary of the party. Santosh is not one of the government. Joe Biden has been nominated by the Democrats to become president. But he is not the chairman of the Democratic Party. Jamie Harrison is the chairman of the party. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson is the leader of the Conservative parliamentary party. He is not the head of the party. Conservative party co-chairs are Ben Elliott and Oliver Dowden. This balance is to ensure that the party is not endangered in the sharing of power. It is a kind of check and balance. Sheikh Hasina is also walking on that path. 

In 1996, after 21 long years, Awami League got the responsibility of running the country. Then the Awami League president did not get a chance to separate the party and the government. After coming to power for the second time in 2009, this wise politician has been gradually separating the party and government in the last 13 years. The number of party leaders who are also minister have reduced to three to four. It is to be noted that Sheikh Hasina is not only the head of Awami League, but also a symbol of unity of the country. She is the bridge between the party, the government and the people. It is logical for her to be the head of the party and the government. But not so with others. Analyzing the Awami League government for three consecutive years, it is seen that very few of those who have taken the two responsibilities together have been able to fulfill the two responsibilities successfully. It is not their incompetence; it is their limitation. In the 2018 elections, Sheikh Hasina did not nominate Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman, Bahauddin Nasim, SM Kamal, BM Mozammel. In the 2019 council, Sheikh Hasina brought Nanak-Abdur Rahman to the presidium. AFM Bahauddin Nasim was made the joint editor. SM Kamal was made the organizing secretary. Mahbub-ul-Alam Hanif and Mirza Azam were not made ministers even though they were nominated as MPs. In the last three years, these few have become the lifeblood of the party under the direction of Sheikh Hasina. They are the ones who keep the organization going. Through them, the Awami League has faced a difficult challenge in the Narayanganj city election. Five of them have combined and kept the team at bay all the time. In the Awami League, their name has become 'Panchpa-B'. Since they are not in the government, they have run everything under the direction of the party chief. These leaders have also gained the confidence of the grassroots. 

Many were surprised by Sheikh Hasina's decision in 2018. But it is clear today that she did not nominate the trustees in the interest of the party.  There is no need to be a scholar to understand how important it was for the party to leave those leaders. That decision of Sheikh Hasina has brought the Awami League face another reality. That is, the Awami League needs a full-time general secretary. The post of General Secretary of Awami League is very sensitive and important. The father of the nation performed this duty. He became the general secretary and took Awami League to the hearts of the people. This position is the bridge between the leader of the party and the leaders and workers. The Awami League is now the largest political party in the country. The country needs Sheikh Hasina. So the team needs a full time person. The Awami League general secretary has already announced that the Awami League will have a council in December. Conferences are being held all over the country now. After the council, the Awami League will probably have to fight the most difficult electoral battle. So the team with symptoms of various diseases must be made strong and healthy. I said at the beginning, every word of Sheikh Hasina has a deep philosophical meaning. Did the Prime Minister hint to cure the Awami League by regretting the absence of a strong opposition party? Is the Awami League getting a general secretary in the next council who will look after the organization all the time? Because Sheikh Hasina knows the strengths and weaknesses of Awami League best.