The writer has rightly lamented the rise of corrupt politicians and rapid decline of good governance since independence. The main reason behind such catastrophic decline has always been the monopolisation of political and administrative powers by a powerful political leader and his close coteries of family members and political flunkies. People of Bangladesh became the victims of their political masters and their close family members. As long as an inner circle of family members and friends had the support of the leader, there was no escape from corruption and cronyism which spread all over the nation.

As a result, democracy became dysfunctional and change of government only meant the change of the governing family. This is why it is extremely important that no single individual and groups should control all the levers of power. In the United States, the separation of power between legislative and executive is supposed to provide necessary checks and balances. But when the same political party controlled both the White House and the House of Representatives, checks and balances became ineffective as evidenced by the Republican Party's control of the White House and Congress for the last six years, leading to a disastrous war in Iraq. As Lord Acton once remarked: "Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

To stem the concentration of power, the caretaker government must ensure that no single political group gets monopoly over political power. All the major political parties should have a say in governing and no family should be allowed to dominate the political process. All political sons and daughters must find their ways through their individual efforts. In the United States, Hillary Clinton is trying to get elected on her own merits and being the wife of a former president may not help her in the long run. In Bangladesh, the family members of the political leaders become instant leaders even though they have little to show.

The caretaker government must not allow such monopoly of political power by family members without any qualifications. And it must find a way to end partisan bickering among political parties. Some kind of power-sharing may help to end this virtual paralysis when opposing political parties refuse the election outcomes and continue to disrupt the country after the election.