In an interview with New-Delhi-based CNN-IBN, broadcast on May 20, AL president Sheikh Hasina has demanded election to parliament immediately and said that CTG is employing "delaying tactics" and wasting people's time in the name of electoral reforms. Sheikh Hasina also stated that the nation is passing through a suffocating situation as people have no right to express their opinion, nor the right to political activities. She made this statement on May 17, on the occasion of her 27th homecoming day.

Democratic front-runner for the 2008 presidential election Hillary Clinton, Edward Kennedy, John Kerry, and 12 other influential US senators in a letter in the past week to the chief adviser, Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed, called for withdrawal of the state of emergency and announcement of a roadmap to election in two months for holding the parliamentary election at the earliest.

The outgoing US ambassador, Patricia Butenis, in a farewell call on Sheikh Hasina also expressed similar view. The US administration has also come up with an observation that there ought to be a roadmap for the election in Bangladesh for return of democracy, but has not pressed for any timeframe.

Earlier, 14 members of the European Parliament urged the CTG to urgently lift the state of emergency and advised the political parties to work together with the government to ensure the effective protection of the democratic rights of every individual whatever their political persuasion.

Surprisingly, the reported letter of the US senators issued on May 14, has not yet been received by the CTG. The New Nation in a report carried on May 18, claimed the letter to be a hoax: "According to a message received from New York yesterday, the US senators expressed their surprise at the publication of the news because they signed no statement, which was quoted to be its basis." However, since then, the authenticity of the letter has been verified.

What is unfortunate is not the statement of the US senators, but the sentiment of our foreign friends who often make comments on the political development of Bangladesh based on superficial knowledge.

The visiting three-member team of the European Union (EU) who met the CEC on May 21, mainly to discuss the electoral issues, told the journalists that they would be happy if the election is held earlier than the timeframe announced by the CTG.

EU ambassador in Dhaka told the newsmen on May 8 at a press conference to mark Europe Day that they would like to see Bangladesh return to democracy and elected government through credible election as soon as possible with necessary reforms of political parties during the current interregnum so that democracy could be sustainable.

The German Envoy Frank Meyke, representing the current EU presidency, said that EU is encouraged by the EC's proposed electoral reforms, particularly the move to register political parties and ensure intra-party democracy. Meyke noted that though it is expected that political parties themselves should move towards democratizing their party structures, political reform involves all democratic stakeholders as well.

A European Union team is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on June 6 on a four-day visit to weigh the latest political situation in Bangladesh, particularly the progress the government has made towards holding the general election, and will report back to the European Commission in Brussels.

Army chief Gen Moeen U. Ahmed reiterated that he wants election and restoration of an elected government as early as possible. "We would like to see a competent, honest and committed leadership to run the country in future," said Moeen in a meeting with the editors of the leading national dailies held on May 23 at his office.

The people of this country have witnessed at least three fair and free elections under the CTG since 1991. Unfortunately, these elections could not bring any qualitative change in the leadership, as these were hunting ground of corrupts and criminals. What leaves us all with a very disturbing feeling is that no public interest was served by those who were placed in public position in these elections. On the contrary, they plundered the public exchequer through non-payment of bills, misuse of duty-free car privilege, and grabbing public properties. These are the people into whose hands the fate of the nation is being leased out through the election.

No doubt, the people want a free, fair and meaningful election as early as possible. At the same time they also want the CTG not to leave the task of cleaning up unfinished before holding the 9th parliamentary election. The task of purging the polluted politics is certainly an uphill one. The rubbish heaped over a long period of political misadventure cannot be removed in a single sweep. But if this CTG fails to do this, it will never be done by any political government.

Consequently, these sorts of people who are now in detention or others of their ilk would be voted again to parliament and the people of this country will have to continue to suffer nauseating setbacks at the hand of corrupt political regime.

Announcing a roadmap for the election is certainly the priority for the CTG. But higher priority ought to be a political system that works and deliver after the election. It is almost an axiomatic truth that politics in Bangladesh has become the most profitable business. The political parties, instead of choosing clean and competent candidates, are always found of choosing candidates capable of making a fat contribution to party's fund, no matter if the money is black or while. To resist such political criminals from entering into the parliament and to put the country firmly into the right track, a lot more definitely will have to be done.

According to a report published in The Daily Star on May 25, the AL high command is preparing comprehensive proposals for reforms in the party as well as in the electoral system, analyzing party constitution and funding, to be finalized by the central working committee. But the political parties also need to go for substantial reform to rid the parties of corrupt and criminally associated individual and to create condition for emergence of new leadership.

The CTG has announced to hold election before the end of 2008. It must be allowed time to complete the uphill task of clamping down on the malignant politics for holding a meaningful election in the country. Any hasty decision announcing the election roadmap will inevitably led to painful results, particularly in an atmosphere where the major political parties and the foreign friends are prodding to go for election post-haste. But the CTG should immediately lift the ban on indoor politics, allowing the political parties to go for reforms.

ANM Nurul Haque is a columnist of The Daily Star.