Reforms vs election: A distracting debate

January 31, 2025

DHAKA – Recently, a debate in our political arena has been clouding our thinking. “No election before reforms” vs “No reforms if it delays the election” has our political players’ attention engaged, distracting them from urgent actions. Exchanges between the respective proponents are now getting shriller and acrimonious. The truth is, we need both and can have both within the time frame of December 2025 or January 2026. People are firm and clear about not missing this unique opportunity to institute vital reforms, but they are also conscious about the complexity of the current situation and would prefer a more stable political and legal scenario.

Those who place the election above reforms undervalue the vital need for the latter. They tend to forget that the introduction of BAKSAL, two military interventions, the binary nature of our politics since the restoration of democracy in 1991, and the authoritarian rule for more than 15 years not only prevented reforms in areas like the judiciary, administration, police, etc, but reversed the process of making governance a public service and not a weapon in the ruler’s hand. All our vital institutions need fundamental reforms—and urgently so. Let there be no doubt about it.

Contrarily, those who place reforms above the election do not truly understand the significance of a free and fair election and the absolute necessity of holding it as soon as possible as voters have been cheated of their right in the last three. It is also vital to put the country back on the track of having an elected government and parliament. The national election will restore people’s right to choose who should and who should not rule them.It is a citizen’s inalienable right to select