The president speaks

The main opposition AL, which has been boycotting parliament sessions since January 31 last year, following the refusal of the business advisory committee to hold discussion on the killing of former finance minister Shah AMS Kibria in a grenade attack, adjourning the normal business of the session, was not present in the house.

To what extent has the president's speech met the nation's expectations by addressing the burning issues that have made the political situation in the country highly volatile and even given rise to the talks of "military takeover or intervention of any third force" as well as some other issues of national importance?

The president's address has not paid due respect to the founding father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. He has been equated with other national leaders "who provided inspiration and leadership in different stages of the historical struggle against colonial power." The president's speech is full of praise for President Ziaur Rahman, the founder of BNP, for his role as "the proclaimer of independence, the proponent of Bangladeshi nationalism and the reviver of multiparty democracy."

A closer look into the president's speech reveals that four-fifths of the 35-page speech is the success story of the policies, programmes and activities the BNP-led four party alliance government during the last four years in the fields of macro-economic management, agriculture, fisheries and livestock, commerce and industry, communications, education, health and nutrition, law-making and judiciary, environment, human resource development, social security, land management, and foreign relations.

Narrating the success story of the political alliance in power by the president who by his deeds and independence of mind must prove that he is non-partisan does not appear to be consistent with the essence of parliamentary system of government that we have.

Someone may argue that the president of India in his address to the joint session of parliament comprising the council of states and the house of the people at the commencement of the first session of each year makes reference, among others, to the policies, programmes and developmental activities of the government.

But it has to be remembered that the president of Bangladesh, unlike his counterpart in India, a country with a long tradition of parliamentary democracy, is not the chief executive of the republic. Unlike the Indian president or the British monarch, he is not a part of parliament. Unlike the president of India, the president of Bangladesh cannot use the term "my government."

Although the president's speech narrates the success story of the activities and achievements of the alliance government, it makes no specific reference to the prevailing grave political crisis resulting from the refusal of the government to discuss caretaker government reform proposal of the AL-led 14-party opposition combine within the parliament or outside. Nor does the president's speech stress the need for enacting a law to regulate the appointments in the Election Commission (EC) as required under Article 118 (1) of the constitution.

A constitutional requirement has remained unimplemented for the last 34 plus years of independence. As a result, the succeeding political governments appointed persons loyal to them as chief election commissioner and election commissioners. This has resulted in the politicisation of a national institution of utmost importance. The present crisis in the EC is a case in point. This even prompted the European Union delegation troika that visited Bangladesh last week to strongly advocate for a really independent EC for holding a free and fair parliamentary election that should be acceptable to all.

The president's speech makes no mention about the unbridled corruption in the country that occupied the number one position in the corruption perception index of the Berlin-based Transparency International for five consecutive years beginning from 2001 including all the past four years of the BNP-led alliance government. Corruption has badly affected the rate of economic growth in the country and increased the gap of distribution of wealth in the society making rich people richer and poor people poorer.

Above all, corruption has shattered the people's dream of a nation that would stand with its head high.

The president's speech makes no mention about the untold sufferings of the people, particularly of the poor and the fixed wage earners, due to continuous price spiral of essentials. The point-point inflation rate hit a new 8-year high of 7.95 percent in November. According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the rate was higher in rural areas than the urban ones, aggravating the continued miseries of the rural poor. Economists are of the opinion that excessive government borrowing from the banking channel, depreciation of taka against the US dollar over the last one year, no open-way competitive system for import, which has given rise to the hegemony of a particular group of businessmen close to the establishment on import and created opportunity for them to manipulate the prices of imported goods, and several domestic fuel price hikes last year have contributed to the persistent upward flight of inflation. The trend of inflation rate hike hits the poor more severely, as they have little ability to adjust with the increased prices of essentials.

The president's speech urged the people and the political parties "to resist united any wrongful attempt of making the nation unstable through terrorism and anarchism." The speech has stressed that "any vile endeavour for creating anarchism through terrorism, violent political activities and bomb-blasts cannot be accepted." This part of the speech deserves appreciation.

But the question arises as to why the alliance government allowed the terrorism to gain its strength by refusing for a considerable period of time to recognise the existence of terrorism. Some very responsible leaders of the alliance government even termed "Bangla Bhai" as the creation of the media. The alliance government has so far failed to unearth the names of those who are really behind the misguided Islamic militants and bring them to book.

The president has termed parliament as "the heart of practising democracy" and invited the members of parliament "for constructive, effective and active participation for establishing democracy rising above jealousy, malice, personal and party interests.

" The president's observation and appeal definitely deserves consideration of the lawmakers belonging to the treasury and opposition benches.

But, has the government taken any sincere move to bring the main opposition back to the house? Has the speaker, the guardian of parliament, initiated any serious effort to bring the main opposition back to the house assuring them that their grievances pertaining to the conduct of the business of the house would be removed? Has the speaker written any letter to the leader of the opposition expressing the assurance and requesting her to attend parliament to save the nascent democracy? Political observers rather believe that the alliance government feels comfortable with the absence of the AL lawmakers from the house.

It may be of some interest to know that the president has hardly any say in the preparation and finalisation of the address. The cabinet division requests the ministries/divisions to furnish briefs highlighting their activities, achievements, etc for the preparation of the president's address to parliament. The cabinet division prepares the draft of the speech on the basis of the briefs received and places it in the cabinet meeting for approval. The cabinet discusses the draft thoroughly and makes changes, where necessary. The draft finally approved by the cabinet takes the form of president's address to parliament.

To conclude, in our parliamentary system of government the president is not the chief executive or head of the government. Although a nominee of the ruling party, he is recognised as non-partisan after his election to the office of the president. His address to parliament need not be the success story of the party in power.

Rather, the president's address should (a) act as guidance for resolving the contentious issues between the government and the opposition; (b) ask the political parties, particularly the ruling party or the leadership to do everything towards developing a political culture that would contribute to the successful functioning of democracy; (c) ask the government to ensure that the people enjoy the fundamental rights granted to them by the constitution; (d) encourage the lawmakers of the treasury and opposition benches to place the national interests above the narrow party interests in the discharge of their responsibilities; and (e) inspire the nation to face the challenges ahead with courage and fortitude.

M Abdul Latif Mondal is a former Secretary to the Government.