BNP Did Not Keep Its Word

Against the backdrop of the completion of four months of the BNP-led government, Mahmudur Rahman Manna, President of Nagorik Oikya, spoke to Agamir Somoy about the country's political situation, the evaluation of coalition partners, the promise of a national government, the future of the simultaneous movement, and the government's successes and failures. The interview was conducted by Rajkumar Nandy.

Agamir Somoy: Under the leadership of the BNP, 42 political parties took to the streets in a simultaneous movement against the Awami League government. The BNP was supposed to evaluate its coalition partners if they could form the government. In line with that, they nominated a few individuals in the election and made two partners state ministers. However, 31 out of the 42 parties received nothing. How do you view this matter?

Mahmudur Rahman Manna: You could certainly say that they did not keep their word the way it was promised. It is being said that 31 out of 42 parties received nothing. But what were they hoping to get? Speaking for myself, I didn't expect to get anything. Although there was a discussion—if I could become an MP, I would become a minister. When I was in the CCU with heart complications, a proposal was made to me: "You become a minister, you don't have to contest the election, or don't contest the election." At that time, I replied that the election itself is currently the biggest political action. Why would I skip that action just to become a minister? I will contest the election, and whether I become a minister or not will be decided later. Therefore, I won't speak about "getting" something here.

"However, the reality is that after October 28, when BNP’s rally in Dhaka was smashed and shattered, BNP was not seen on the field for a long time—no one was found on the field. At that time, we were consistently on the streets, especially the Gonotantro Moncho (Democracy Platform)."

We launched this movement, faced beatings, bullets, and imprisonment, and our activists did the same—yet ignoring them completely is not politics. In that sense, if you talk about evaluating the partners, they certainly have not evaluated them properly.

While politics is inherently a very complex and critical subject, and its diplomatic maneuvering and tactics are such that not everyone can comprehend them, I will say this: promises made in politics cannot be taken back. They must either be implemented or you must explain why you couldn't fulfill them, provided the public is satisfied with the explanation. The BNP did neither.

Agamir Somoy: You contested the 13th National Parliamentary Election from the Bogura-2 constituency. Although the BNP initially supported you there, they later nominated one of their own party leaders. It is being said that your defeat was ensured through this move. Did the BNP deceive you?

Manna: They gave me their word, but they went back on it. Why was my name announced in the first place? And why was someone else fielded against me afterwards? I still don't know. However, it’s not that the BNP fielding their own candidate simply ensured my defeat. Tarique Rahman himself went to that area, held rallies, urged people to vote for the BNP candidate, and spoke about the developments he would bring. What would the people see? The main leader of the BNP, who would become the Prime Minister if they won, is saying these things—naturally, it leaves an impact. In reality, it did have an impact. But as to why they had to shift their position like this, no explanation has reached me to this day.

Agamir Somoy: The BNP had pledged that a 'Government of National Consensus' (National Government) would be established involving the political parties that participated in the movement to oust the Awami League government. After the election, they included two coalition partners in the government. Do you believe that a 'Government of National Consensus' has been formed through this?

Manna: The BNP said they would form a national government, but there is no sign of that. Making one or two people state ministers does not create a national government. It does not prove that they have kept their promise of a national government. Ask anyone—who is in power now? Everyone will say it's the BNP. Therefore, this is not a national government; this is a BNP government, and it is running as a BNP government so far. As for the two state ministers from the coalition partners, they themselves can tell you how comfortable or well-off they are there, and to what extent they are able to run it as a government of consensus. I don’t see it that way.

Agamir Somoy: Under these circumstances, as a top leader of a coalition party, what do you think the partners of the BNP-led simultaneous movement should do?

Manna: Before speaking about the partners, I actually need to decide what I will do myself. We had a platform—the Gonotantro Moncho. One person from there has become a minister. Now, if we make a decision or criticize the government, he won't be able to join us. Another partner left the alliance earlier. That leaves four parties. Among them is the Revolutionary Workers Party, whose General Secretary received a nomination but didn't win. He is dissatisfied with the government. He probably thinks that if the BNP candidate hadn’t been his opponent, or if the BNP had managed things better, he could have won. The BNP didn't do that, so he is upset. But I don't know what exact political stance he will take.

Overall, we will offer constructive criticism of the government on various issues. They (the government) still have time to rectify those issues. We will watch. After that, we will follow whichever direction politics takes us—that is only natural.
Agamir Somoy: The BNP government has completed four months in power. Under these circumstances, how would you evaluate the government?

Manna: It cannot be said right now; only four months have passed. This is not enough time to evaluate a government, because there is still an opportunity to bounce back. However, as a government, it has gained nothing in these four months. Why am I saying this? The immense hope with which people voted overwhelmingly for the BNP—I do not see any reflection or awakening of that optimism among the people. Rather, I see that questions have arisen within the public.

People are asking—the prices of commodities are so high, so what did we gain? The law and order situation is so poor, and look, the government cannot seem to do anything about it. Furthermore, extortion, terrorism, and illegal occupations have not decreased across various places. It continues silently underneath, and all of this exists at the lower levels. There is no investment in the country, and there are no new recruitments for jobs. All in all, a picture of frustration prevails among the people. However, I believe that during these four months, the government was supposed to remain much more popular. People should have been speaking much more in favor of the government. Instead, I see the media being more critical. Therefore, I believe the government's success rate is not very high.

Agamir Somoy: There are allegations that the fallen Awami League is being rehabilitated in many places with the backing of the BNP. Under these conditions, what is the trajectory of BNP's politics and its political future?

Manna: I wouldn't say that the activities of the banned Awami League are being rehabilitated with the backing of the BNP. This is because since the parliament decided to ban the activities of the Awami League, no power other than another parliamentary decision can legally grant them the opportunity to do politics again. What existed prior to this was a government order, and perhaps they were able to ban their activities back then using that order—but they cannot do that anymore. From that perspective, they (the government) have pretty much blocked the path for the Awami League.

Now, if the Awami League cannot make a comeback, and if the BNP does not perform well either, and furthermore, Jamaat-e-Islami is also in a state of great hesitation. Jamaat is plagued by the fear that if a chaotic situation arises, they might lose the opportunity they have received after so many years. They are not even playing the role of an opposition party by launching a movement against this government if needed. They fear that doing so might make the Awami League powerful again, or that they might return. Because of this, Jamaat remains a positively inactive opposition party. They have no real role. Even independent MP Rumeen Farhana can speak louder in parliament than they can. In other words, a "gray area" has been created across all politics. Summing it all up, I would say politics is still somewhat murky or unsettled. You cannot see what is happening, and it is hard to comprehend what will happen next.

Agamir Somoy: Although Jamaat-e-Islami used to be an ally of the BNP, they are now the opposition party in parliament. Is the government handling them properly?

Manna: There is no question of handling them; fundamental policy differences still remain between them. They have differences on the question of state reforms, and they have differed over the ordinances. They also had differences regarding the July Charter. They could handle these things if they executed them the way they were supposed to—but they are not doing that.

Take this issue of constitutional reform or amendments, whatever we call it—what will come of it? They talked about forming a reform commission, or rather, we all did, but the BNP will not do that. Moreover, it was their (BNP's) own election manifesto that was passed, which does not include a reform commission. They will speak of amending the constitution and will want to pass it through parliament—meaning they will have to do it alone. I heard they want to do this alone in July. Let them do it; once they do, we will have to see what Jamaat's role turns out to be in response to this stance by the BNP.