"Extra-constitutional rule if political parties fail to play a proper role"

In an exclusive interview with PROBE, Maj. Gen. (retd) SM Ibrahim BP, Chairman of Bangladesh Kalyan Party, reiterates his mantra for change and points to the possibility of an extra-constitutional rule if the major parties fail to play a proper political role

A PROBE interview

Tell us about Kalyan Party
The raison d'etre for Kalyan Party's birth is change in politics, a change for the good. Kalyan Party, if translated, means Welfare Party. Political economy will give you the phrase, welfare state. That is one of our objectives. If we want to achieve a welfare state, there must be certain conditions -- firstly, honest, able leadership; secondly, a liking and love for the proletariat; and thirdly, a strong economy.
In Bangladesh people always ask, why cannot we have a Mahathir Muhammed? The question should be, why don't we have a Mahathir Muhammed? We don't have it because we don't know where to look for it. The people must have a yardstick for national leadership., then they must choose their leaders. Demagogy must not get priority. Priority must be given to well-laid out plans which can be checked and monitored from time to time.
Kalyan Party is people-based and people oriented. I have personally travelled over 30,000 km within the country over the past nine months. We are strong on the ground. We need the cooperation of the people.

Isn't change a very difficult proposition, particularly if you note how the recent City Corporation elections ushered in no change at all?
No, it is not difficult. Look at the US. In America, one of the major parties, the Republicans or the Democrats, often continue for a period of eight years. Then the people look for a change. They have seen one president and they want an alternative. With us, the people have seen both the parties and there is no third alternative in front of them. If you offer them an alternative, they will start examining the alternative. This alternative may not pass the exam in the first chance, it will have to attempt at least three times. So, in December 2008, Kalyan Party may get 40 to 60 seats. It may be less, but we will make a bridgehead into the parliament. We will gather our strength and propagate our cause. Then in the next election, we will have a better impact. We will then have access to the media, access to the public though public meetings, access to government servants, we can appeal and project our case. In Bangladesh, the two major parties never allowed any other party to project its case. In 1972-73, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal was massacred by the Awami League government. This has been the same all along. Had there been no 1/11, the major parties would not have allowed anyone else to rise.

Could you do anything as a party after 1/11?
What have we not done? We have been able to go to the media. We have been able to go to the people.

 
As General Ibrahim, you have been in the media for a long time, but what about Kalyan Party?
That is an advantage I have. Kalyan Party is circulated along with my name.

 
But how many people actually know the name of Kalyan Party?
How many people do you expect should know the party in just nine months? If we are known in 40 constituencies at the moment, we are happy. I don't need only Dhanmandi or Gulshan to know the party, I need 40 constituencies to know it. And 40 constituencies know us well because we have been working. As a military man, I am aware of secrecy and deception in plans being a part of the science of war. So we don't want to go about beating our drum before we are ready so the opposing forces don't destroy us. Give us time and we will make our mark. I am confident.

Does Kalyan Party intend to join any alliance?
The election strategy of the major parties and the minor parties at this moment indicates such electoral alliance, or rather, electoral conveniences. This is an understanding of convenience. It is either with Awami League or BNP. The smaller parties may also make an alliance, but it is still a matter of conjecture. Having an alliance is the only available alternative and quiet communication is on.

Isn't this a contradiction, a compromising of your ideology, to join in an alliance with any of these major parties?
It is not joining an alliance, but a matter of convenience. It is not compromising our ideology, but enforcing it. I need to go to the parliament to make my point. The parliament needs good people. So I must make sacrifices to get there.

Is your party ready for the registration?
Inshallah, well in time. We have our small offices set up everywhere. We will submit the names and addresses of our people as requested.

Will registration remain a condition, with the major parties not really cooperating in this regard?
They have not usually cooperated in any major constructive issue. They see Bangladesh through their own prism; they don't to see it through the prism of the larger section of people. But as far as registration is concerned, I believe this requirement will remain.

What about funds? How transparent is your funding? Is your bank account is ready for public scrutiny?
Our funding is as transparent as can be because we have no money! We are a small party, our expenses are minimum, we take small donations from members and run our daily expense. Our party is waiting for our constitution to be approved by the Election Commission and then we will start working on this. We have had our constitution and manifesto ready from Day One. Very few parties have done this in the history of the country.

How do you see politics unfolding in the country?
As of this moment, one of the major political parties is ready for the election on its own or with other well-wishers. The second major political party is not ready for the election, will oppose the election and will want the election to be procrastinated and will put the government in a fix. So either the major parties play their proper role or the nation will have to prepare for an extra-constitutional rule.

What are your comments on the recent City Corporation elections?
The recently held City Corporation elections had a couple of positive indications and a few negative ones. The positive ones are, for example, that the elections can be held under a relaxed state of emergency; the elections were credible; people did come forward to vote; and traditional fraud did not take place this time. The negative aspects are, because of unexplained reasons and in unexplained manner, BNP decided not to participate in the elections. As a result, it almost amounted to a walkover for Awami League. The next negative point is, the extent to which the people have been motivated in relation to change, has come under crucial examination. The extent of motivation has been poor. Much more effort has to be put in by the government, the media and the patriotic forces to convince the people about the necessity of change. Change can only come if it comes first in their outlook, second in their behaviour and thirdly in national politics.

Is it about the people? It was the parties, after all, who nominated those 'criminal' candidates...
Every party definitely belongs to the people. People's pressure or popular pressure is a catalyst. The people have not exerted any pressure on the parties for two reasons. Reason number one -- the large number of people living in the mofussils and in the pourashavas, are not convinced of the extent of corruption done by previous governments, particularly the immediate past government. This is because of a lack of information campaign. Secondly, the parties have not had any sense of accountability that if they do not put up good candidates, they will suffer. If there was a system of negative voting, then things may have been different. But the government has made an unexplained delay in implementing such rules.

 
So you are pointing your finger at the people rather than the political parties?
I am pointing my finger at three sources. One is the government of Bangladesh, two is the common people and three is the political parties. The political parties themselves aren't convinced that they need change. They haven't been made to feel that they need change. This is a failure of the government and of the well-meaning people.

But there have been so many programmes to this end -- CPD dialogue, Prothom Alo and Daily Star roundtables, the Road Show...
The Road Show is an example of good clowning. That shouldn't be taken into consideration. As for CPD, Prothom Alo and other dialogues, these are all efforts. But, as I learnt from an important position I held for sometime in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, you have to physically go to the people, not leave it in the market. When you have programme and it is printed in Prothom Alo, it is available in the market. People may read it or not.

But there were efforts at the grassroots to, like the BBC dialogue, CPD dialogue...
This is another classic example of a good experiment not yielding appropriate results.

Why do you think the results weren't achieved?
If you want to change, you have to compare it with a certain model. But the people haven't been convinced that the model is corrupt. So how will the people perceive what change they need? I demand from the government again and again, both as an individual and as Chairman of Kalyan Party, that they publish a White Paper on two major sectors of the country -- the energy sector and the food sector. We must see what corruption has taken place in these sectors in the last five years.

Why only the last five years?
I say that because of the corruption of the immediate past government. But the process of corruption started with Bangabandhu as a sapling and became a small tree in the BNP government rule of Ziaur Rahman. Then when Ershad came, he secured the tree so nothing could destroy this tree called corruption. Then the tree grew up and became a banyan tree.
I demand that the government have a well-orchestrated campaign of informing and motivating people.

How to go about it?
There is need for psychological warfare. We are fighting a war against corruption, against ignorance and prejudice. We need a commander, soldiers and weapons and we need to implement it. The leaders should raise their voice and call upon the government in this regard rather than simply blame each other.

 
Did you field any candidate in the City Corporation elections?
No. We didn't want to be bogged down in the process.

What about the upazila election?
We will, Inshallah, have less than 100 but more than 80 candidates supported by Bangladesh Kalyan Party in the upazila election. We have die-hard members, common members and well-wishers.
How do you stand about the upazila elections being held before the national election?
We are one of the proponents of the demand for the upazila election to be held before the national election. We hold the two major political parties responsible for the two failures. Firstly, in spite of the instructions of the highest court of the country, the two major political parties did not hold elections to the upazilas. On the contrary, they condemned it simply by saying that this was a product of Ershad. Secondly, they consider the upazila system a threat to their vested interests in the parliamentary system. We feel that the upazila elections should be held before the parliamentary elections.

What do you foresee about the upazila elections?
Chances are that the major political parties will verbally oppose the upazila elections through the media. They will hold rallies, form human chains and such, but on the other hand they will field candidates in disguise and make sure that they pass.

What about the present government; do you feel it is losing control, having to make deals and release persons, or is this a strategy?
I think the government has a major mandate to hold an election and all this is part of their strategy. If they fail to hold the election, they will go down in history as the government that failed to hold an election. If they pass, they will go down in history as the government that succeeded in holding an election. To succeed they need to bring on board all the major political parties. The political parties have a propensity of ransoming the government. This is very unfortunate, but this is reality. So the government has probably adopted a strategy of give and take -- you take the release of your leaders through legal process or on medical grounds, in lieu you cooperate with the government for free and fair elections. What the government has failed to do is make the people understand how things were and that we need a change. They have failed to show how corrupt the past governments were.

The media has highlighted the corruption charges against Tareque Rahman, but so far nothing substantial have been proved against him...
He is being charged by the books of law, but corruption isn't committed by the books of law. The laws framed by the governments of the country always fall behind. To tackle exception situations, you need exceptional leadership, exceptional brains, exceptional attitude and exceptional sacrifice, none of which is happening in Bangladesh.

The same applies to Hasina?
Absolutely. The government is trying to tackle exceptional and non-traditional corruption through very traditional laws and with very traditional lawyers. And the corrupt people are ready to spend any amount for their own legal counsel.
Corruption at a national level does not merely mean taking bribes. Approximately 250 military officers lost their jobs from February 1991 to October 2006 when two major political parties held three different governments. The offences of most of the military officers were negligence of duty, failure in command and so on. May I ask the past leadership, who will take account of your failure and your negligence? There is no procedure in this country to ask for the accountability of the prime ministers and the cabinets. If they don't take correct decisions, what happens to the country? They have to answer for it.
We can't simply say we will follow democracy in Westminster style; we must also follow honesty in Westminster style. We can't just say we will follow democracy in American style; we have to also follow the working habits American style.

 
How do you view the issue of the advisors meeting Hasina at her residence?
This was an avoidable event. I see as equally offensive the Secretary General of BNP, and more offensive, the Secretary General of a non-BNP party, meeting Khaleda Zia in her sub-jail. So the government has committed two avoidable mistakes for which they will possibly be reprimanded by the nation in future.

Things seem to be sliding back to Square One. What happened to the Spirit of 1/11?
The Spirit of 1/11 was change, change for the better. This included change of policies, change of personalities, bringing in reforms, making political parties more democratic. Not everything has been lost; a part of it has been lost. 
There are certain factors responsible for this. In the first caretaker government of 2007, the difference of opinion among the advisors was perceptible. There were the apparent hardliners and the others who were ore compromising on politics. Then changes were made in January this year. As a result, the major actions of the government have been delayed. The results have been delayed and inadequate. So the Spirit of 1/11 has only been partially fulfilled.

Was two years enough for the government to fulfill its mandate?
Two years can never be enough for change. For example, the handling of BNP in the year 2007 has been very immature -- the midnight conferences of the standing committee, the invitation to the reformist section, etc. As for the Spirit of 1/11, should the next parliament maintain this issue over a period of time, some changes will come about. And to make sure that these changes come about, you need part of the parliament to be different from what it used to be. They have to be different in their mentality, in their education, in their efficiency and in their courage.

But nothing has been done in that line, other than a few small parties cropping up here and there...
We will have to wait and see. The major difficulty of this government is, who looks after the issue of politics? It has an advisor for commerce, for foreign affairs, for home affairs, etc, but it appears to the people that one of the most important issues for the government is political affairs. Who looks after political affairs? Isn't that a major activity of the government? Why didn't they think of that before?
What we suggest is that the government should have had a liaison committee of politicians who promise not to take part in the elections in the near future. They could act as a bridge between the political community and the government. Or the government could have political advisors to the Chief Advisor.

People's perception is that it is not a level playing field, particularly in the government's dealing with Awami League and BNP. The government seems softer towards Awami League...
As for people's perception, the government has failed to inform people about the actual picture. Had they been able to do so, then people's perception would be different.

What is your perception?
My perception is that the government should neither have interfered in the division of BNP, nor in its unification. They should have left them to themselves.

How is your equation with the present government?
We were invited to a courtesy meeting with the Election Commission which lasted for one hour and thirty minutes. We were invited to the pre-dialogue with the government and to the dialogue itself, we submitted a memorandum to the government and we maintain our communication with the government through the media. We want to keep the people of the country as witnesses to what we are saying as opposed to closed door communication. We want the government to succeed.

You hinted earlier in the interview that one major political party is not ready for the election...
It is a guess that one major party possibly feels that they need time to reorganise and recoup themselves after the offensive of the 1/11 government. That is why they possibly would want the elected deferred.

 
Hasina, in the name of medical treatment, is going around to weddings, visiting relations and so on. What do you say about that?
This is a farce. This is an absolute farce. This nation is accustomed to such farcical statements and activities of the leaders of this nation. We want a change. My deepest regards for all the good things these two lady leaders have done, but I call upon them to make greater contribution to the nation by reforming their parties and taking a better course.

If one of the parties doesn't participate in the election, is there a possibility of any unconstitutional intervention?
There are all chances of this because then people will say that this will not be a credible election. It will not be an acceptable election. According to the Constitution, the caretaker government is to continue till it hands over power to the next elected government. That caretaker government then may well be an extra-constitutional government. I say "extra-constitutional", because people may say that the Constitution has failed to provide a resolution of the political crisis in the country. This is an unforeseen situation for which the nation was not prepared. So when I say "extra-constitutional", I am referring to martial law. I may not like it, people may not like it, but it has happened time and again in various countries.
This might even be within the framework of the Constitution by appointing the Army Chief as head of the caretaker government. He is a prominent citizen, after all, and it is nowhere written that you can't appoint him.

There is a lot of similarity between your call for change and the theme of change in Obama's speeches...
You can say he borrowed this from Kalyan Party! Politics of change -- this phrase has been coined by Kalyan Party on December 4, 2007. We do appreciate Obama's stand for change. We need change. Look at Nature -- you need to prune trees regularly if they are to yield fruit. So we believe in politics of change.

Do you have any comments on the role of the military?
The military is part and parcel of our society. They also have a stake in the development of the nation. They put in tremendous amount of hard work over the last 20 months in a variety of activities for which they deserve unreserved appreciation, particularly for preparing the voter list and voter ID cards. And as an important segment of the society, they also have room to ponder as to what is the outcome of all their support and hard work.
Kalyan Party believes in politics of reconciliation and welcomes the military to play their due role in a healthy reconciled Bangladesh nation.