Static politics

The two-party politics by the two major political parties has bogged us down, and is not taking the country forward at the pace it should; mainly due to stubborn resistance by the opposition (during any regime). The political leaders are incapable of resolving the inner conflicts.

Therefore it is time to think about a third platform, to break the duo-poly. They have nothing new to offer, and should allow others to try out something fresh. Since the game of politics indirectly involves all the citizens, the people's verdict cannot be ignored, regardless of the blind faith on the party leaders. At present the silent majority is being ignored. It is a danger signal.

It is understood that each party has its aims and objectives, which has its own mandate to implement. But the other side of the coin is the style of politicking. This is the problem in Dhaka today.

The other weakness is personality-based politics, which is rather common in the third world nations, due to lack of competition, which is subsequently due to limited opportunity.

Bangladesh enjoys a cultural homogeneity which is rare in other parts of the world. Still we are stalled, and suffering, with for too much emphasis on marginal issues, like trade marks, symbolism, and styles of play (the core issue was resolved after liberation). This is wasting time, and we are paying dearly for it.

What we see is subjective politics, rather than open, objective political programs. The tendency to butter up is apparent in all leaderships. What has happened to the leadership filters? The followers cannot advice on this point. The top carries too much filth and garbage, dimming the light from the political lighthouses. The sense of direction in politics is weak, transferring it to the people. A leader who believes in such transfer of burden has to fade out eventually.

The political party workers have to be moulded with the right dies. Here too much autonomy has been bestowed on hot-headed youths, who do not have the right experience and enough maturity. It boomerangs and some signs of it have been indicated in the media reports. Others cannot be disciplined without self-discipline, first and foremost. Such issues are not discussed by the leaders, openly.

The leaders depend too much on the followers. Enthusiasm, wrongly directed, could cause havoc and it is doing so for quite sometime. Sycophancy is another metal block, which has to be discouraged firmly. Political chanting is a deadly poison, which hits suddenly and swiftly.

Anyway, our society has able persons who can contribute to political leadership. The stumbling block is monopoly, regardless of ability. The point is how much longer we have to wait.