Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina Set To Win Fourth Straight Term In Jan. 7 Elections – OpEd

Bangladesh’s general elections to elect 300 members of Parliament will be held on Jan. 7, 2024. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is chasing a fourth straight term, despite a bleak economy that needed an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout last year. The IMF approved funds of US$4.7 billion last year.

The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Kazi Habibul Awal, and his team have made all preparations to hold free and fair elections.

With a 173.80 million population, Bangladesh is a democratic country in South Asia. Under its political system, elected members of the winning party will select a leader who will later become the country’s prime minster.

“There are 44 registered political parties that will take part in the 2024 elections. There are 119.70 million voters who will vote in around 42,000 polling stations during the elections,” Bangladesh Embassy’s Charge d’Affaires, Md. Shajebur Rahman, said at a media briefing in Jakarta recently. 

The government is committed to conducting a free, fair, and peaceful election and has given sufficient powers to the Election Commission.

“The Bangladesh Election Commission is a constitutional body that is entrusted with carrying out activities to conduct free, fair, transparent, and credible elections to ensure the democratic system is on a solid footing in the country as well as to establish good governance in society and economic development,” Shajebur said.

“Bangladesh is committed to keeping democratic institutions and the constitutional body at the centre of the election mechanism and not allowing any undemocratic mechanism or forces to take charge of election matters and hamper the democratic journey of Bangladesh.”

The CEC stated that political parties can start campaigning from Dec.18 to Jan. 5, 2024.

According to the BenarNews news website, as many as 2,260 candidates from 29 parties, including hundreds of independents, will officially be vying for votes in which Bangladeshis will elect representatives for 300 seats in the country’s legislature, the Jatiya Sangsad.

Bangladesh’s ruling Awami League (AL) party is expected to clinch a fourth consecutive term in the Jan. 7 election. The Awami League has been ruling Bangladesh since 2009.

Hasina, who is the world’s longest-serving female prime minister and president of the Awami League, is heading to the Jan. 7 national elections with a 14-party alliance led by the ruling party.  Hasina urged alliance partners to be united before and after the polls and called upon the leaders to not withdraw party candidates upon announcement. 

“I want all candidates to be in the field. This will increase voter turnout. Voting will also be festive, participatory, and competitive,” the Wion news channel reported, quoting Hasina as saying. 

Hasina recently announced her party’s polls manifesto for the 2024 national election, vowing to build a developed, prosperous, and Smart Bangladesh by 2041.

“Bangladesh will be established as a high-middle-income country by 2031 and a developed, prosperous, and smart one by 2041 by the Bangladesh Awami League, the bearer of the spirit of the Liberation War, if the people once again allow us to serve them by voting for the boat, the AL’s electoral symbol,” The Daily Star newspaper reported, quoting Hasina as saying.

In her past 15 years in power, according to Reuters news agency, Hasina, 76, has been credited with turning around the economy and the massive garments industry, winning international praise for sheltering Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution in neighbouring Myanmar.

Hasina said if the people of the country vote for the Awami League, her party will give them development, peace, and prosperity.

The slogan of the Awami League’s election manifesto is “Smart Bangladesh where Development Shines, Accelerating Employment”. In the manifesto, the Awami League vowed to show zero tolerance against corruption and terrorism, alleviate poverty, create employment, and ensure service-oriented and accountable administration.

The manifesto also placed greater focus on infrastructure development, freedom of press, the practice of transparency, accountability, and good governance as well as strengthened democratic values in all aspects of state management.

“We are responsible for all the mistakes during the last 15 years … Success is yours. Look at our mistakes with a forgiving eye. We promise to learn from past mistakes and conduct future activities according to your expectations,” The Daily Star reported, quoting Hasina as saying.

“As a continuation of the past, this time, we have prepared an implementable election manifesto by setting specific targets. The continuity of the long-term action plans announced in the 2008, 2014, and 2018 election manifestos has also been maintained in the 12th election manifesto.”

The Awami League and its 14-party coalition are contesting in 298 parliamentary constituencies. The main competition will be between the Awami League and the opposition party, the Jatiya Party (JP).

The sole negative event was the boycott of the Jan. 7 election by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the main opposition party. The BNP alleges that under Hasina’s rule, the elections would not be free and fair. 

Hasina and her Awami League have repeatedly condemned the BNP as troublemakers out to sabotage the elections, rebuffing warnings by rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) that the crackdown aimed to subdue the opposition.

The country’s largest Islamist opposition party, the radical Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), has also been barred from participating in the election.

The CEC has invited election observers from many countries. Among them is the Commonwealth Expert Team (CET) led by the former prime minister of Jamaica, Bruce Golding, the main person to monitor the general elections in Bangladesh.

“The Commonwealth’s commitment to fostering peaceful, fair, and credible elections is unwavering. Impartial and independent election observers provide valuable recommendations to improve and strengthen elections and democratic processes,” Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland KC said in a statement, which was published on the thecommonwealth.org website.

“The team’s deployment demonstrates the Commonwealth’s continued commitment to supporting electoral democracy in our 56 member countries and safeguarding the rights of the people of Bangladesh as they take part in these pivotal elections”.

The expert team will consider all aspects of the election process and provide their observations on whether the elections are conducted in line with the democratic standards to which Bangladesh has committed itself. The CET will also be supported by staff members from the Commonwealth Secretariat.

“It is my honour and privilege to have been asked to lead this team and to serve the Commonwealth once again. I am pleased to be collaborating with this expert team which, as is customary, includes experts from diverse backgrounds, countries, and professions. In conducting our duties in Bangladesh, we pledge to remain objective, transparent, and independent,” Golding said.   

During their stay in Bangladesh, the CET will meet various stakeholders, including political parties, police, civil society groups, citizen observer and monitor groups as well as representatives from the media.  

The election in Bangladesh is an important event for the country’s future and economic development. The people of Bangladesh are looking forward to free, fair, and credible elections on Jan. 7.