Dysfunctional Democracy

A writer's recent observation on 'democracy Bangladesh style' is accurate and incisive. In fact, since before liberation of 1971, functional democracy has never been fostered. Think about the election of 1973. Despite undisputed leadership, Bangabandhu was not ready to spare even ten seats for the opposition. Was it only AL that fought the liberation war? And what happened next? First, the parliamentary system was abolished and presidential form of govt introduced. Then in a single stroke all parties were banned and BAKSAL was introduced with gagging the media. What happened during the period of about four years into liberation is history. The atrocities of Rakhi Bahini, Lal Bahini and such other private bahinis rampaged across the country and people know what a hell the country was in. But with all these autocratic measures Bangabandhu could not but lament 'we got 75 million rags; but where is mine one'? He also lamented 'other leaders got gold mines and I got mines of thieves'. So everyone can understand what kind of democracy will run in this unfortunate country. In fact the leadership most needed after such a devastating war was absent right from the beginning. Bangabandhu was a great leader with a lion's heart no doubt but the sternness, prudence and vision to run the administration of a new-born, war-ravaged country were not visible in him. The only thing we must be grateful to him forever is that it was his monumental personality and immense popularity, he made India withdraw her troops from Bangladeshi soil. But the lack of other quality to control, unite and lead a war-ravaged country towards reconstruction and development could not make him a successful statesman. It was he that could put the nation in solid unity but unfortunately he failed to do so and the temptation of hijacking all the credit to the AL alone was the congenital disease that is never to be cured. The symptoms are but what are going on now. It is perhaps our destiny. But may be everything changes with time. The attitude of many Bangabandhu worshippers also might have changed and they have learned to look at a spade as a sade. In fact the system of democracy prevalent in our country in the name of British model Westminister type democracy is just a misnomer. Here one is seen begging votes from door to door today and after being elected we have to beg and beg just to have a glimpse of him, let alone listen to our miseries. This is simply a caricatuyre of democracy. But still so many of our emlightened (?) personalities have been heard to change this top-to-bottom rotten system. How can they expect this type of one day’s democracy would could address our problems? Meanwhile Mr. Mahmudur Rahman Manna has put forward a new idea about a new system of democracy and politics. And Mr. ASMA Rob has also said that the present system of democracy needs to be changed if people’s participation is honestly desired. We do not know if Mr. Manna’s new idea which he wishes to advance with the support of the people. Will he please explain what type of ‘democracy’ will he follow if he goes to power? As a new idea whuch might better fit in our situation, I like to forward the following suggestions: 1. The term of the govt should be of 4 (four) years. 2. The system of election will be as follows: a. There will be no national election of individual candidate. Election will be held on party basis. b. The top bosses of the parties will explain their programs and election manifesto from the same stage (as in the US) to be broadcast on TV, radio and other print media so that common people can know about both the party bosses and their programs. c. The seats of the parliament will be distributed according to the ratio of votes obtained. d. The parties will nominate one or more than one of their local leaders of each constituency who will be elected by the local workers of that party. e. The parties will nominate MPs of a particular constituency winning the local election. f. After one year, a survey on the local MP’s popularity will be conducted by well-reputed and nationally accepted organization and if the MP gets less than 50% support of the local people, the party shall replace that MP with the runner up in the local election. 3. The local govt bodies will be empowered to conduct all the local development work. Revenue willl be collected by the local govt bodies to meet the recurring expenditure and local development projects. 4. There will be no involvement of the political parties in the affairs of the educational institutions. Nor there will be any party leader heading the Managing Committees/Governing Bodies of the schools and collleges. 5. The constitutional bodies like the Judiciary, the PSC, the EC shall be strengthened and must be absolutely free from the intervention of the govt whatsoever. 6. The constitutional provision that says all citizens are equal in the eye of law must be ‘real and meaningful’ and not abstract.

Ah Singapore!

One of my sweetest memories was to visit my youngest son and his newly married wife in Singapore. Though our time schedule was not fixed with wisdom, it was a real pleasure because we heard so many good things about Singapore that it was almost our dream to visit the island country. However after checking in at ZIA (Zia International Airport) we got on board the aircraft of Singapore Airlines at about 10.40 p.m. The plane took off on time. After a 4-hours' journey we our plane touched the ground of Changi airport of Singapore. Upon landing at the airport The first impression was in a word 'splendid'! 'terrific'!! What a clean n' disciplined environment! It was a new world far, far apart from ours. We also have an international airport. We too became independent almost four decades ago. But the difference between our airport and theirs was too striking to contemplate. I asked myself: why have we failed to achieve what Singapore has been able to though she was pushed into independence almost a decade after us? Both of us are Asians and Singapore was poorer than us only a quarter of a century ago. I wonder what enabled them to bring about a miracular change! Is it patriotism? Or was it that Singapore was fortunate enough to have a unique leader like Lee Kuan Yu? Our son n' daughter-in-law come to the airport to receive us.

On way to Son's residence at Bukit Batok, we were enchanted to see the surroundings, the roads, the habitats and the environnment above all.

The short journey by taxi from Changi airport to my son's apartment was about 30 minutes' drive. All the way I was wondering what they have done with their small island country. The undulating landscape was dotted here and there with green grassy land and not-so-small forest lands. The green was really dazzling the reason for which, we knew later. But it was strikingly clean all around. The atmosphere air was fresh and clean; no smoke, no dust. Filled with the joy of coming to a country that could boast of her marvellous landscape, I felt fortunate. But there was much more to make me wonder.

Celebration of Singapore's National Day:

Fortunately for us, it was Singapore's national day. There was great jubilation celebrating the day. We went to the Marina Bay where the celebration was roaring. The whole scenerio was so splendidly spectacular that it struck us with great surprise. There were firecrackers, brightening the whole sky with multi-colored lights. Seven fighter planes were maneuvering in the sky displaying unbelievable feats. Their flying skills were astounding and took us quite by surprise. The crowd was very big and the whole area was teeming with human heads - both on land and on water of the lakes. But what struck us most was the absence of police to control the crowd of hundreds of thousands of people who were so disciplined. No hue and cry, no hubbub, no hustling. Only 10/12 policemen were just guarding a bailey bridge so that no one slips into the lake below. It was really a wonderful experience for us who are accustomed to witnessing policemen controlling the unruly crowd with batons and teargas. I wondered how a sense of discipline has been ingrained in the Singaporeans and how efficiently they were managing the administration of the island country.
However, we prepared ourselves to get back to our residence almost halfway in the celebration and jubilation. The crowd was so thick that we took about 40 minutes to cross a 50 feet bailey bridge over the lake. Tired as we were, we had to make our way through another big crowd to get to the nearest MRT station.

Transportation system of Singapore:
One of the unique aspect of Singapore is her transport system. We could check from the internet the number and time of buses and trains (MRT = Mass Rapid Transport) arriving at our nearest bus stop or MRT station. It saved our unnecessary waiting time at the bus stop or MRT. There are bus services to each and every destination within Singapore and that too so easy and comfortable that even a blind man won't feel any difficulty. Trains are more frequent -- a gap of only 3/4 minutes. Ticketing system is also electronically managed. No problem at all. Justifiably, a recent survey shows that more than 90% people are satisfied with the transport system of Singapore. The are bus bays on the roads for buses to stop without blocking the road. At terminals the system is all the more convenient: no hassele, no goading, nothing of the sort. For every route there are fixed lanes for the passengers to board the bus of particular route number. The MRT is another wonderful thing! There are two lines crossing each other at a point: one red and the other green line crossing each other at City Hall and Raffles Square. Another one, violet line crossed red line at Outram Park. City Hall MRT station is really a wonder. The red line is about 70 to 80 feet underground there and the green line crosses it about 40 feet above. You have to reach actual ground level at another 40 feet height. Yes, there is no direct crossing: one crossing the other at the same level. Neither is there any level crossing of both bus andMRT lines. Everything going smooth and easy excepting that around SunTec City, which is the centre of Singapore, there is occasionally traffic jams. But that too for a very short while. Singaporeans know the value of their time.
Bus service is also very comfortable. There are only two services: SMRT and SBST for intracity transport. You can go everywhere by bus. The ticketing system is also very neat. You can buy an EZ-Link Card to use for both bus and MRT fare. This is so easy and convenient. After all the transport system of Singapore is almost unimaginable for us Bangladeshis.

Shopping Malls:
O yea! The shopping malls are almost everywhere and full of everything you need. The dazzling beauty of the interior and exterior of the Malls are in a word overwhelming. There are shopping malls on the ground and far underground; but everywhere the sight is the same. Dazzling lights, colored signboards and display boards are really captivating. Every shopping mall was booming with people of all ages and color. I wondered how they have been able to keep the power supply on without break even for a second. In fact during my stay there for a month I never for once experienced power failure for a split second. I also wondered what would have happened if there had been power failure while thousands of people rushed about at the MRT stations or shopping malls 70/80 feet underground. Fortunately, nothing of this sort happened. Hats off to the Singapore power supply authority.

Food Courts: One more very interesting thing is that at every MRT, BRT and Mall there are food courts where every kind of food is available all the time. In Singapore one can have the taste of all Asian cuisines of alluring tastes and flavour. Besides food both 'halaal' and forbidden for Muslims is available in every food-stall. And every food court is hotly buzzing with a host of enthusiastic eaters. The whole thing is that you need not ever go to the kitchen if you wish.

To Singapore zoo and bird park: We were eager to see the zoo as we had heard the environment, though created, was very 'natural'. Our son Arshad and daughter-in-law Pamela were so enthusiastic that we forgot we had grown old. At the gate there were a few elephants and crocodiles. They were but statues but looked so live that many would get outwitted. Tickets bought, we entered the zoo itself. The environment was really so that it took us to a real rain-forest. We were thrilled. Considering the area of the zoo, we took a tram. We saw many animals, birds and reptiles including the polar bear and white tiger. Every creature was in its natural surroundings. Fantastic! The whole theme of the zoo was worthy of admiration.

We also went to the Jurong Bird Park. There was really a great wealth of bird life. Those birds - especially the parakeets were of so splendid in color that their beauty enthralled us. They were in their natural surroundings - on tall trees covered by nets. We had a ride of mono-rail in the bird park which was fantastic indeed! We enjoyed the trip with our hearts' content. Side by side, I remembered what we were doing with our so rich a country that has all the elements of tourist attraction but unfortunately, we don't have a Lee Kuan Yu or Mahathir.

Is the beast taking hold of human soul?

Whatever happening all around gives an impression that perhaps the whole mankind is running helter skelter towards its inevitable goal of damnation. Why has hate replaced love? why insolence, reason? why serpents, the green? Why's man become so bloodthirsty of his own fellow being? Some lunatics may go berserk for their personal ulterior motives but why those who don't have the remotest connections with the useless and meaningless killings of other innocent people who they might not have come across even in generations had there not been an imposed devil's war? I simply can't understand. Think about the US invasion Iraq on damnably false excuse and what's happening there now? Was it for democracy or 'demoncracy'? How much did the US & the UK gained from this unnecessary and detestable manslaughter? What's Iraq has been thrown in now? Do not the US and its allies feel any sense of guilt to see the endless bloodshed happening there everyday? What are the suicide squads are doing in different names? Are they human beings or simply animals? Whose blood are they splitting? What is their destination? To hell for sure; because if they say they are doing this in the cause of Islam they are just 'munafiqs' and 'kafirs'. Where has the Holy Qur'an said there is no sin in splitting the blood of the innocent? Why do the Shias and the Sunnis kill one another? Is their Allah, his last Prophet, the Holy Qur'an and Hadith or their 'kiblah' different? Will they not look back to give a little thought for interest are they killing one another? Will the bombs - be it Israeli, US or other - spare them for being Shia or Sunni? Fools! They are destroying none but themselves. God save them or punish the wrong-doers and transgressors with destruction as HE did to the peoples of the ancient.

Joy of being GrandPa

Ah! Alhamdulillah. I am grandPa again. My second son just has had a baby boy. Alhamdulillah; Alhamdulillah. May His grace encompass this my little cute grandson REEHAN ALI - as his father has called him. Congrtas to its mother that she bore a son to our family. May Allah bless her with unbounded joy and peace. AMEEN.

Save our agricultural land

Today a news report said our agricultural land is dwindling very fast because of our govt's lack of land policy and most imprudent activities of a few govt agencies responsible for maintaining the existing land and water bodies by randomly selling all as plots to fortunate and privileged ones depriving the nation of its most valuable life saver i,e, the provider of food, essential for our existence. One feels utterly despaired and helpless to see morons and imprudent, myopic and self-serving leaders and bureaucrats are leading our 'sonar Bangla' (golden Bengal) to the dungeon. They have made the capital Dhaka the most unlivable city in the world by their ill-motivated and imprudent activities. The policy of our govts have been to widen the gap between the rich and the poor and all the activities have been directed to that end. Just look at the picture published in a few dailies: one kg of hisha fish costs about 280 kg 'potol' (a vegetable). Think about the farmer who grows such vegetables but you will not get at even Tk=5/- per kg in Dhaka. It is Tk=30/- here. But who's getting the difference and gaining weight? The govt can say but won't do the precious little. And these are our popular govts. What a joke indeed! In fact to save our cultivable land from dwindling to a dangerous level, there must be a land policy. First of all no new construction should be allowed on any fertile agricultural land. As many villages as possible must be built according to plans so that horizontal expansion cannot happen. Multistory buildings should be constructed according to optimum size and space with all civic facilities. For new construction, fallow and unfertile land may be used but there must not be any individual plots for sale. To keep the water-bodies free and clean waste management should be modernized at all costs. There must be recycling plants in every townships if possible. Ponds or other pools must not be filled up considering the crisis of sweet water for drinking and household uses in the very imminent future. There's a lot more to do if our people are to survive the coming crisis of food and other essentials for life. But who will care? Everybody in this country is for himself even if the country goes to hell. How wretched we are! Bangladesh has become barren to give birth to meritorious, patriotic and visionary leaders.

The Dream Of A Modern City

I’m sure every citizen of Dhaka wishes to have a cleaner, jam-free, comfortably livable Dhaka city. But ‘if wishes were horses beggars would ride’ – goes a famous saw. To build a modern city is not easy and it needs meritorious and experienced town planners, honest and patriotic engineers, above all visionary and foresighted leadership. The question is: do we have that kind of people? The answer is understandable, considering the prevailing situation. In this context we can remember W. Churchill who in one session of his war cabinet said, “Gentlemen, let’s get to work.” Perhaps this is why Britain could survive the devastating bombing of London and pull itself through the trauma of the WWII. As a successful leader, he believed in acts not in lectures and sermons. But as for ourselves, no comment is perhaps enough. Yet my recent visit to Singapore and half a dozen cities of Canada, inspired me to share the experience I gathered. Many will say a city can’t be modernized so easily. Maybe true; but they should know how Singapore and Malayasia could do that while they gained independence later than us. But though we got independence twice, second time almost half a century ago, we are half a century behind them. Many will say they got leaders like Dr. Mahathir or Lee Kuan Yu. Still I’m not among the pessimists. We can at least follow the examples of those countries. We can make progress if we can shake off our egoism and stubbornness to lag behind and fish in muddy water. A few simple but determined programs can make a lot of difference. Let me explain. The number one problem of Dhaka city is its exasperating traffic jam. The causes of this problem are several. Among them: 1. fewer and narrower roads; 2. density of population; 3. slum business; 4. misuse and mis-utilization of land; 5. influx of landless/homeless people into the city; 6. half a dozen authorities for road and traffic management; 7. half-hearted and corrupt effort of enforcing law and order on the roads etc. These problems are in fact being sustained by our law & order agencies as well our administration because those have become very potential source of income for many without investing a farthing. But in every modern city public transport system has been introduced and there are no outdated and smaller vehicles on the streets. For easy and comfortable movement of traffic, MRT (Mass Rapid Transport) has been introduced by way of light trains or big-bodied/double-decker comfortable buses connecting even satellite townships which have made commuters come to the centre of the town easily and comfortably. In most road and rail crossings either the rail track or the road has been elevated bringing the cost to the minimum. In the downtowns they have constructed multistory parking places where you can park your car only by paying high parking fees. Parking anywhere and everywhere being strictly prohibited, car owners prefer to leave their cars in the MRT or bus stations leaving their car there or not taking out their cars at all. So the roads have become more or less jam-free. The city authorities are also earning a lot by realizing parking fees from the parking lots. But the situation in our city is quite different. The govt seems to have no control over vehicle owners or they do not sincerely want to solve the problem. We have thousands of buses, minibuses, human haulers, tempos, CNGs, taxicabs which are either beyond the reach of law or get clandestine support of the authorities concerned. In this respect the govt agencies should act sincerely and honestly taking the problem as serious and very harmful for the economy of the country. However, we are heartened to hear that an elevated expressway from Syedabad to Uttara and Gabtoli is in the process of construction. But just by constructing an elevated expressway and keeping the roads as crammed with vehicles of different sizes and age won’t solve the problem. The excuse of 8% - 9% of the city for roads is not very strong. We could reduce the problem to a great extent by replacing age-old and smaller vehicles by luxurious and comfortable buses in the streets with modern ticketing system. This could be done by forming 5/6 BRT companies for the main routes. The owners of thousands of buses now could be shareholders of those companies. This would remove unhealthy and dangerous competition on the roads jeopardizing people’s lives and properties. Of course this depends on the sincere and visionary measures to be taken by the govt. In the case of fewer roads we can make a difference if a pragmatic program is taken. We know we have only 145,000 sq. km of land area with a colossal population of 150 million. Still we did never care to make wise and judicious use of that limited land. The total land area of Dhaka city is hardly 1000 sq. km. but by a good planning based on ground reality we can extract at least 15% - 20% of that land which could be used as children’s park, swimming pools, gyms, walkways for elders, playgrounds etc. We have several govt officers’ and employees’ colonies at Azimpur. Eskaton, Kalabagan, Motijheel etc. The buildings there are only four storeyed. Moreover, most of them have become age-worn requiring frequent repair. Through a wise housing planning we can extract a very good chunk of land by constructing 15/20 storey buildings with 10/12 flats on each floor of same size as now with modern facilities. If this is done, I’m sure Motijheel area alone can accommodate 2/3rds of the officers and employees living in different colonies. This would minimize expenditure of public money by way of transport and other public utility services like power, gas, water etc besides stopping wastage and theft. The slum and heavily congested areas like Katasur, Rayerbazar, Shakharibazar, Patuatuly, Babubazar, etc could be made into modern apartment complexes with all civic facilities needed for a decent living by demolishing ramshackle, dilapidated houses, tin-sheds and other improvised shelters (?). The local MPs can play important role in doing that. In this case, the example of Singapore can be followed. It’s very sad that every year tragic fire destroys the slums like Islambag, Nimtoli etc only because our mindset is still stuck in the nineteenth century. A few months ago we watched in a TV channel that the planning for constructing footpaths has been shelved though the fund has been squandered by responsible persons going abroad for “gaining experience” how footpaths could be made. Strange!! To make the best use of our limited land we must stop allotment of plots forthwith. We should rather encourage the realtors to construct multi-storeyed apartment buildings on lands around Dhaka city judicially and wisely allotted to them. Those satellite townships should be connected to the city by commuter trains and big-bodied/double-decker buses. There should be sidewalks along each and every road except the highways for pedestrians. As of now, for the existing roads, the town planners can easily do it simply by covering the open drains with 3/4 feet wide slabs, since there’s no space for expansion in residential areas. The open drains have been a great threat to public health by being ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes, besides offering some irresponsible citizens to be used as open dustbin. They throw solid wastes into the drains causing serious blockade and creating a very dirty and stinking atmosphere. To be brief the city must grow vertically if we want a clean, jam-free, less crowded city where people could breathe a bit of fresh air and move without shoving others. But whatever we do, if the landless/homeless people continue to flood the city, no plan can be implemented satisfactorily. To do that, the govt has to create opportunity for self employment through small and cottage industries, engaging people on co-operative basis in farming, fish culture and other feasible and viable programs. There is ample scope for implementing those programs across the country if the govt sincerely and honestly wants it. The garment and tannery industries should be shifted outside the city without further delay. All the industries should construct workers’ colonies within walking distance. This will make the workers’ life easier, safer and much less hazardous. This will also make road traffic less congested. In the same way Dhaka Central Jail must be shifted outside the capital as soon as possible and made the site a park for environmental development for the inhabitants of the old part of the city. The govt should adopt a zero-tolerance policy in dealing with setting up slums overnight wherever there is space. That it has become a great source of income for the vested quarters is no secret now. This practice must be stopped. However, all those are suggestions from an ordinary citizen who, like many others, want a cleaner, safer, jam-free, comfortably livable city. The rest is with the good intention of the govt.

Obscure World

Both nature and human mind are getting too hazy and obscure. Truth and honesty has been replaced by duplicity and cunning. Known faces are becoming blurred, difficult to recognize. Eccentricity, greed and selfishness have taken hold of human soul. Materialism has become so overpowering as to prevail on Godfearingness and piety. Human life and dignity are no more sacred to anybody. Mankind seems rushing blindly towards its ultimate end. Who knows when the Final moment will come? But perhaps surely not very far.