The 22nd Council of the Bangladesh Awami League (AL) was held on December 24th. For the last several months, various discussions have been going on in politics around the Council. The general secretary post of the AL was at the center of the discussion. Mr Obaidul Quader was already going to finish his second term as the party's general secretary. Therefore, there was an expectation among many that the party's central leadership might bring a new face to the position of general secretary. But as the day of the Council approached, it became clear that the party's top leadership might not bring about significant changes in the central leadership through the Council. The primary reason is the impending national legislative election in January 2024.
There was no question of discussing the post of AL president because the alternative leadership of Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has not been developed in the party so far. However, while addressing the Council, Sheikh Hasina presented the issue of not being president again before the councilors. But the reality is that the party does not have an alternative presidential candidate for Sheikh Hasina, as she has become a symbol of unity. Therefore, she has been elected as the president of the party.
As expected, Mr Obaidul Quader has been elected General Secretary of the party for the third consecutive term. Although Mr Quader had various health problems, he became the most trusted confidant of the honorable Prime Minister as the party's general secretary in the last two terms. As a result, the party president, Sheikh Hasina, did not want to see anyone else as general secretary ahead of the next election. Although the names of several top leaders were discussed in the media as general secretaries, considering reality, Mr Quader has been deemed worthy by the AL president and councilors from different parts of the country. It can be said for sure that the top leadership of the party had to take such a decision, focusing on the upcoming elections. If a new general secretary had been elected just one year before the election, it would have been somewhat difficult for him or her to handle the upcoming elections properly. And keeping this issue in mind, Mr Quader might have been elected as the party's general secretary.
The primary responsibility of the
party’s new committee will
be to ensure the victory of
AL in the next election
Apart from the president and general secretary, there was no change in other vital positions in the new central committee. Each of the four joint general secretaries is in the new committee as a joint general secretary. In most cases, the people who held the position are there. However, there are new faces in the organising secretary post who are well-tested in politics. Overall, AL wants to keep almost the same committee to overcome the next election. Now the question is: how logical is the central leadership's decision not to bring about change in the leadership? Judging by the perspective of the next election, if a significant change could have been introduced, there might be a possibility of creating various types of discontent in the party, which could create problems for the AL during the next elections.
Keeping this issue in mind, maybe the party president, Sheikh Hasina, did not want to bring any change to the central leadership of the party. We all should remember that a political party like the AL has many qualified leaders who can be considered general secretaries. A day before the council session, Mr Obaidul Quader told the media that at least ten central leaders in the party could become the party's general secretary. As a result, there was no shortage of qualified leaders in the party. There is no logical reason to rule out the possibility that others will be upset if someone is chosen among them, so I think that the party president has done the right thing.
Since almost the same committee has been running the party for the past four years and has dealt with the political programmes of the opposition parties, I don't think there will be any challenge for this committee in the coming days. On the political spectrum, the opposition party will always want to form the government by defeating the ruling party. In the political reality of Bangladesh, during the elections every five years, the overenthusiastic activities of the opposition parties can be observed. The main issue is to overthrow the government through agitation. In the last 14 years, the AL has successfully dealt with various political programmes of the opposition parties. Therefore, I do not think it will be too difficult for this committee to deal with the political agenda of the opposition parties in the coming days.
However, like most people in the country, I also have some expectations from the new committee of the AL. Over the past 14 years in power, the dominance of party infiltrators has been observed at various levels. The party has been divided into factions at the local level based on the Union Parishad elections. Just as infiltrators predominate, on the one hand, dedicated and qualified leaders, in many cases, find themselves cornered by not being nominated in local government elections. Thus, they are reluctant to participate in party activities.
The main task of the newly elected committee of the party will be to resolve conflicts at all levels, from the center to the local level. If the loyal supporters and leaders of the party turn away from the party, the AL may have to go through a difficult time in the next election. At the same time, the abettors of the infiltrators need to be identified and penalised. It is also true that if there is a major change in the party organisationally around the election, that decision can affect the election negatively. But at the same time, if the hybrid leaders are evaluated instead of the party loyalists, there will be frustration among the loyals, which will not bring good results for the party.
The primary responsibility of the party's new committee will be to ensure the victory of AL in the next election. Presently, there is no other option but AL's victory to continue the development process achieved in Bangladesh in the last 14 years. As a result, it is necessary to nominate dedicated candidates in every seat to win the election by confronting the opposition party's movement in the coming days. In this case, I hope that the party under the leadership of the honorable Prime Minister will do the same job well.
Citizens anticipate that the new committee will work to maintain the distinction between the party and the government. We know that in any democratic system, political parties come to power by winning elections, and when the party forms the government, it implements policies in line with the election manifesto of the party. But in Bangladesh, the party and the government become mixed, ultimately severely affecting the party. Since the leaders in important positions in the party are in charge of various vital government ministries, they cannot devote enough time to the party. Thus, the AL's new central leadership should consider involving some leaders in organisational strengthening while others could be given the responsibility of running the government. The AL will be able to maintain continuity of power if the state can be managed and the party can be strengthened, maintaining a balance between the two.
The author is a Professor, Department of Public Administration,
University of Rajshahi