Waliur Rahman speaks to DOT :
The reason this year’s election is very important is because we have to keep our current government in power. Just look at the nation’s economic state 10 years ago and look at it now. In the last decade, our GDP, import-export, remittance and foreign investment increased significantly. Economically we have grown much more powerful. As a result, we are advancing economically. Overall, we are enjoying a boon.
On this election, we want the people’s help to prove that they too are on our side, on Awami League’s side. If the AL government stays in power, the next five years will see development as well. We have also seen an increase in political participation. The reason for this is Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s dialogue. She has sat with every party, given them equal importance.
For the first time since establishing our democracy 45 years ago, we are about to experience a fair, transparent, non-volatile election without any neutral caretaker government. It will be proved in this election that we don’t trust a caretaker government, and that a partisan government is able to hold a transparent election. Our elections will be the same as every other democracy around the world: The EU, India, US, Malaysia, Japan, South Korea – they all have elections under a partisan government.
Nevertheless, there have been conspiracies to tarnish the legitimacy of the election. The people will not let such a thing happen. The people will always be for the side of development. They will be for the government that brings them development. They will reject the side that funnels money abroad by doing business in the country. The World Bank and European Union have called us a role model for development. Thus, in order to uphold the Freedom Fighters’ dreams we will overcome a hundred obstacles, hold a successful election and bring Awami League to power. This is my hope.
The interviewee is a former ambassador and a political analyst
Interview by Khairul Alam
Translated by Abrar Hussain