politics for people

8/14/2019 Politics for People

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POLITICS FOR PEOPLE

Throughout recorded history, philosophers and thinkers have

sought to solve the problems of how to establish a balance between

the rights and obligations of human beings. In the earlier period,

loyalty to a community was rewarded by unhindered exercise of

rights. Later the feudal lords guaranteed security and safety of everybasic human need. The Greeks realized that a contented man was

necessary for a happy society yet they could not devise the principlesof human rights due to dominant master-slave culture. The advent of

Humanism in 7th century Asia paved the way for the age of Man in

which human needs and urges for freedom and enlightenment have

been accorded recognition. Since then as the limits of human

knowledge have widened, more and more attention has been paid to

the requirements identifying and safeguarding such rights as are

considered essential for the progress of humankind. In the eighteenth

century, the ideas of constitutional enlightenment which provide the

frame-work of human rights as a part of political culture and socialmorality was spelt out. The adoption of Universal Declaration of

Human Rights by the General Assembly of the UNO in 1948 chalked

out a broad consensus of contemporary civilization on the subject ofhuman rights.

However, it did not ensure that everyone in this earth is

guaranteed full freedom or that all governments are committed to

safeguarding human rights without any exception. Till today, human

beings continue to be a victim of discrimination, intolerance and in

equality at the hands of fellow men. Despite the existence of UNHuman Rights Commission and similar bodies at regional and

national levels there is no full proof system under which an individual

or a community or even a nation can seek immediate or effective

redress of grievances of human rights.

There are two main reasons for this dreadful situation. First,

the legislative guarantee designed by western type of democracy

cover but a segment of the total field of human rights and the legal

sanctions can be applied only after the violations have taken place an

can only be substantiated by relevant evidences which is hardly

possible, for there stands the browbeat of the powerful violations.

Secondly, the safeguarding of human rights is frequently considered

on political or ideological basis. The western societys thinking is

concentrated on political rights but ignores economic and social

rights. Freedom of exercising human rights is judged on ground ofreligion, race, creed and colour. Thus, serious contradictions exist

between the receipts and practices of contemporary world in respectof safeguarding human rights. The diabolical position adopted by the

economically rich and military powerful countries that support

undemocratic govt. is the only reason behind the violation of human

rights in all parts of the world.

Like most subjects affecting human personality, human rights

has many facets. As an all-pervading and complete code human rights

provide a comprehensive framework of human conduct in terms of

individual, social, moral, political, economic, civil rights andobligations. It stands firm and uncompromising on freedom of

conscience, i.e. exercise of reason- and to seek, receive and impart

information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.This is essential so that knowledge may be fostered and ignorance

repelled. The principles concerning the protection of personal

property, and possessions, equality before law, equality of opportunity

supported by unhindered access of means, abolishing poverty,

equitable distribution and redistribution of wealth, elimination of

social dominance and economic exploitation, ensuring political rights,

guaranteed sanctity of contracts and agreements as expressed in allpolitical, economic and social mandates between the government and

the people are the true basis of the concepts of human rights. Human

rights are not only a set of code of conduct but must be regarded as a

code of civilization, which fulfils spiritual and material needs of all

human beings.


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Life is dynamic, and so are human beings and human society.

One characteristics of dynamism is that it generates friction,

differences and even disputes. The exercise of right to differ is the

root of all inquiry, investigation, research and knowledge that led

human society to progress. We must strive to safeguard the rights but

we must secure that our differences should act and react beneficently

and not destructively, i.e., we have to submit to the rule of law.

Human beings on the move along the long difficult and weary pathtrodden, up the corridors of history, through centuries of sufferings

and tribulations aspired for nothing else but freedom, justice andequality. It is necessary and essential that the western rich and mighty

nations come back to norm, i.e. be guided by the core sense of human

rights and discharge their duties totally and impartially to safeguard

freedom, justice and equality, and contribute to the promotion of

human welfare and prosperity in social, economic, political walks of

life of all people of all nations. After two world wars, in which million

of human beings were indiscriminately killed in the concentration

camps and aerial bombings the mankind did not learned much. A

satanic urge to dominate over the weaker segment of human beings ofthe weaker nations and to create intermediator national governments

and embolden them by every means i.e. arms and financial grants and

supporting them to wage political and economic exploitation onhelpless men women and children and when those ill fated human

beings cry in pain and stand to resist, terming them as terrorists is in

no way be called safeguarding human rights.

Democracy, though a form of government, is in reality, a way

of life and a goal or ideal. The democratic way of life recognizes the

equality and dignity of all people regardless of social standing. A goal

of democratic society is to assure its people opportunity and means to

make full use of their abilities. Democracy, in practice now a days

often falls short of democracy as an ideal. In a democratic society, it is

important that politicians know how the people feel about public

issues. In democracy majority rule is based on the idea that thejudgment (and not whine or motives) of the many is better than the

judgment of the few, but that does not confer on the majority to do

whatever it wants. Certain rights are there that can never be taken

away from the minorities. The measure of democracy is the measure

of the freedom granted to its humblest citizens.

Democracies attempt to preserve individual freedom and to

promote equality in their per suit of happiness. The greatest obstacle

to individual freedom and equality is political. Nation must have

programs to provide economic security, to ease sufferings and todevelop human potential. People differ in ability but democracy must

meet the just demands at the people more effectively. Citizen should be able to talk and help shape public opinion by speaking out on

important issues. In democracy, the movement of persons of groups

forms social groups. People are extremely inquisitive and have long

sought to understand themselves and their place in this earth. It

assumes that each individual has certain needs and that an individual

joins a group to achieve something from it and the group in turn

expects each member to make some type of contribution that will

enrich it. Democracy discovers the best means of achieving designed

goals with a minimum of needless conflict, as human dignity andrespect for individual are considered basic. To avoid conflict,

democracy finds ways to maintain human relations by mutual

accommodation. With accepted norms, people become certain aboutwhat is expected of them. Human conflicts are not always

troublesome. Sometimes it clarifies objectives and thus redress the

simmering tensions. Human nature must be looked at candidly and

honestly. It needs refinement. Democracy develops human beings

whose powers are all in balance, who have knowledge and wisdom,

who knows how to live in harmony with others, who honors laws of

nature and possess high standard of moral judgment and try to

interpret the meaning of life in the society. It awares the best use of

knowledge and power in a human way. An individual perceives this

world according to his own experience. This affects his personality

and leads him to direct his behavior to satisfy the needs of his total

self. In the development of human personality one strives for self-actualization, self-maintenance and self-enhancement. Negation of

human rights leads to loneliness of self-alienation and self-rejection.


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The central theme today running across the country is

Governance. This of course require a minimum common

understanding about this key term which in Bangladesh concept is yet

to be defined precisely. The term has thus far, been used rather

flexibly and serves as an umbrella concept which enables it to

incorporate a variety of social, political and cultural variables within

its discourse. This eclectic use of the concept of governance is thus a

source of confusion. It is therefore important to conceptualizeoperationalise and apply the general idea of governance more

precisely, so as to ascertain its real explanatory value.

Governance is a complex of processes; more precisely it is a

process of formation and realization of a superstructure of a political

authority of a country given the constraints of a vision, commitment,

strategy and capacity. In reality all these four continuously changing

over time and therefore the term governance is a dynamic one.

It is true that a mental picture of an ideal future may arise at any time

in the mind of an individual running the country, but this individual

vision needs to be socially articulated through accumulating aminimum level of support within society in order to qualify as a

natural democratic ideal rather than an individuals dream. Thus a

serious vision is formed through formal and informal processes ofdiscussions, negotiations with various classes and social groups,

political leaders, industrial and agricultural sector people and civil

societies. The important point is not the size of the social forces

mobilized behind democratic ideal but the quality of their support.

Two features are important in determining the quality of the support

or the primary degree of commitment to governance. Ownership of

the vision is important, eg. if the vision in conceived or imposed by

external forces, say aid donors; thus the degree of commitment as the

quality of support required at home is likely to be weak. A vague,

abstract and popular vision is more likely to reflect a zero or very little

commitment behind it even if it is owned domestically. On the other

hand a domestically owned vision generally reflects a higher degree ofcommitment through a more realistic concretization of the vision. A

well articulated vision linking a few long term goals consistently

within a holistic strategic framework given substance by micro level

programs and projects actually reveals a higher level of commitment

on the part of the political authority. After achieving higher degree of

commitment in terms of the ability of the political authority to take

hard policy decisions which may become necessary for implementing

the concretized vision; the relevant areas of focus for those hard

changes in politics are mobilization of resources, mobilization of

support from private sector, civil society, state machinery and finallythe creation and enforcement of new institutions in all those spheres to

implement the vision. This change in policies is not a mechanical andrigid process and its final or part success also depends on the maturity,

learning effect and practical statecraft of the government.

To determine the factors on which depend the capacity of the

government to implement its vision the sources of the strength of the

government as it exists prior to any changes in policies and action for

implementation of the vision should be assessed. The strength of the

capacity of the state obviously depends on the form of the

government, but at the same time it is also partly derived from thenature of the vision and policies. A vision that promotes shared

growth the development is likely to have larger support in the society.

The technical quality of the state machinery, the inherited culturalvalues and formal institutions, the presence of supportive private

sector also determines the capacity to implement the democratic ideals

and its inherent values.

It is necessary to trace the interrelations among vision,

commitment, strategy and capacity. The political authority first of all

defines a vision as long term goal for development. However the

political authority is constrained by its commitment and available

capacity that set limits upon the process of implementation of the

formed strategy. If the political authority gives to dynamism, it can try

and build new capacities and learn from experience. The difficult

process of implemention generates a rich feedback from experience,which may in turn induce the authority to give up or modify or extend

the scope of governance. The initial degree of commitment which is


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born simultaneously with the birth of the vision along with the

availability of capacity jointly determines the response pattern of the

political authority to the feedback experience from the primary

process of implementation. The process of implementation lends to

partial, full or zero realization of the vision. Failures or success of

governance is by nature qualitative and partial to the conerete

combination of capacities and commitment with respect to a

concretized vision.

Over the last three decades Bangladesh has witnessed aprogressive loss of ownership over its democratic vision. This process

has been driven by an increasing dependence of foreign prescription

that made unscrupulous attempt to encroach over policy situation in

Bangladesh. In the absence of any domestically designed vision and

heavy aid dependence has logically led the political authority not only

to lose control over its policy agendas but also over its functionaries

where project fetishism has contributed a loss of domestic ownership

and indigenous democratic ideals.

The term governance has come to mean a number of things

including a judgement on the quality of government; how people are

ruled, how the affairs of the state are administered and regulated---- anations system of polities in relation to public administration and

law, exercise of political power to manage a nations affairs and the

manner in which power is exercised in the management of a countrys

economic and social resources for development.

This definition points to (i) there is acceptance of the fact that

governance includes exercise of authority of power (ii) the process

through which authority or power is exercised and with what intent

and (iii) interrelation and interaction among polities, economies,

administration and law in a given society which is of almost

importance for understanding governance. Thus governance denotes

desirable state of affairs, which includes/:(i) political freedom including free speech and freely

elected parliament,

(ii) constitution and judicial protection for right of the

individual,

(iii) maintenance of rule of law by independent judiciary,

(iv) executive accountability to a freely elected legislature

and

(v) development of society as a whole,

As such governance depends on the extent to which agovernment is perceived and accepted as legitimate, committed to

improving public welfare and responsive to needs of its citizens,competent to assure law and order and deliver public services, have

the capacity to create an enabling policy environment for productive

activities and equitable in its conduct.

The citizens of Bangladesh, at this juncture of the countrys

history deserves governance for more than one reason. During the last

regime the economy was seriously ruined; productivity, efficiency and

moral of public servants deteriorated sharply; indiscipline and miss

management in the public sector was wide spread and there wasserious misuse of public office and state power. The people were not

only interested in dislodging the regime, but also in demolishing what

it stored for and the system it developed to privatize state resourcesand permanent services. The people naturally aspired for a functional

democratic system that would allow meaningful popular participation

at all levels, protect their fundamental right and rid the nation form

mismanagement and indiscipline.

Political accountability is an essential precondition for the

functioning of a democratic system. It entails that those holding

elective political office must be held accountable to the citizens for all

their actions. It is also necessary that there should be appropriate

checks and balances within the political system so that no one branch

of the government dominates and controls others. Here is dominant

executive, weak legislature, distorted growth and low level ofdevelopment of political parties, lack of independence of judiciary,

free but irresponsible media, lack of human right etc. In a


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parliamentary system political accountability is ensured by making the

executive accountable to legislature. The legislature keeps watch over

the activities of the executive of through a number of mechanisms

such as various committees where question raised by the legislature

and debates on important issues are held. However, a number of

factors considerably weakened parliaments performances. These are

(i) the inexperience of the majority of the legislators (ii) the reluctance

of the government to subject itself or its plans to debate (iii) thetendency of the opposition to oppose only for the sake of opposition

(iv) the floor crossing law that has subjected the legislators to be therubber stamp of the parties, wishes and (v) recommendation of the

committees are not acted upon on many occasions due to political

influence and bureaucratic intransigence. In a parliamentary system

the majority party governs with the consent of other parties. So, the

role of the ruling party is to present and defend its policies in the

parliament. The major problem of political accountability in

Bangladesh can be attributed to the nature and character of the

political parties. They have a crucial role in the political development

of the country. However due to different reasons on many occasion parliaments have not been able to lead and guide effectively at

different crucial juncture. There are the weak natures of the

leadership, fragmentation of parties into different factions/ groups, thepromotion and perpetuation of personality cult, the failure to develop

clear and cohesive socio-economic programs, unstable membership

and lack of organizational discipline and also undemocratic practices.

Fragmentation of political parties into smaller factions groups has

been a recurring phenomenon with party leaders using such split to

obtain benefits for themselves and their key followers from the regime

in power. Political parties have been dominated exclusively by

personalities. The situation resulted in political parties building and

cashing in on the image of a big leader rather then concentrating on

formulating and implementing socio-economic programs. Thus goes

the selection of leader on the basis of heredity and perpetuation of

undemocratic practices within political parties more than ever before.

Bureaucratic accountability is possible only when political

accountability is in place. It requires effective performance of public

agents and officials in their relation with the public in a transparent

manner. There is also a need to monitor the performance of civil

servants and to institutionalize measures to correct their abusers,

excesses and deficiencies. To ensure bureaucratic accountability, civil

servants must be made aware of their responsibilities. All past

governments failed to take decisive steps to define the role-relationship between political master and public servants and also the

judiciary, the press and the civil society. The rules of business thatempowers the ministers as head of the ministry and the warrant of

precedence that places M Ps on higher rank over civil and military top

brasses is immediately needed. The judiciary should be freed and the

media should be set free but must be held responsible if they tend to

destroy national identity, its culture, moral, ethics etc.

Citizens group or civil society have not been able to play any

significant role in influencing public policies and sleeping behavior

and action of MPs and civil servants . Even the advocacy role of civilsocieties has mostly been limited to holding meetings and organizing

seminars with no follow up actions to determine the impact on MPs or

civil servants of recommendations emanating from such gathering.

The colonial power implanted some of their political, social,

legal and economic institutions into their colonies. Their aim was not

to create foundation of a good state but to maintain law and order to

suppress native revolt against the foreign rule and domination so that

they might plunder the colonies. Thus all political activities were seen

with suspicions, political institutions remained particularly

underdeveloped. And even though most people were desperately poor

there were no systematic efforts for building economic institutions.

Lord Cromer once most openly said that England was only ready to

grant independence to its colonies in which it developed a group of

leaders who were imbued with the spirit of western education andculture and were ready to lead their nation under western influence.

But under no circumstances would the British government allow an


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independent Islamic state as it would bring in a human society with

care for natural law where individualism, social justice and free of all

sorts of corruption will be honoured and thus establish an exploitation

free human society and stand against all forms of hegimonism.

Bangladesh, after its independence, the person who claimed to be a

great nationalist leader created a patrimonial state and promoted

booty capitalism in the name of socialism but stifled economic

development. He opened up a pandora box which contained social,cultural, religious and political issues that were otherwise untouched

in economic analysis. Changes were afoot in the direction ofeconomic stagnation and even decline. He failed to maintain law and

order, distorted native culture, encouraged plundering of national

wealth promoted exploitation by his poortymen, neglected public

services, excessive laissez-faire, excessive control and excessive

spending dominated. Economic performance is intimately linked with

economic, social and political institutions the base of governance.

The government through its coercive power and authority, can create

and develop institution which in term may lead to governance.

Development minded decision makers, if be resolute can have

a large degree of insulation against the ravages of short run pork-

barrel politics and use the discipline of the market against theinevitable lobbies of groups predation in distributive politics. Such

insulation may be difficult but not impossible in a governance and for

a people oriented political party. When the concept of development

includes autonomy and participation of the people, the insulation of

policy elites becomes particularly suspect. Governance may have

intrinsic value for the welfare of the masses but it is not a panacea for

economic problems unless there is strategy and commitment

supported by capacity.

Governance demands a combination of wisdom in the rulers

and the consent of the ruled. The democratic form of government may

do away with the worst excesses of government if they adequatelyrestrain the power of the executive. Though the quality of the

government depends rather upon the quality of the governed yet

governance is about legitimacy, rule of law, accountability,

transparency and above all competence of political leadership in

leading the nation to prosperity. Little else is required to carry a state

to the highest degree of opulence from the lowest barbarianism, but

peace, easy taxes and a tolerable administration of justice; all the rest

being brought about by natural course of things. Adam Smith,

Arther Lewis emphasized the importance of vertical mobility-

economic and cultural, we can not expect vigorous economic growthto occur in communities where social mobility is prevented. While

institutions are important for maintaining economic politics and socialstability, economic growth if not properly managed can cause social

and political instability.

The state of underdevelopment of Bangladesh today must be

understood not only from the view of the economy, but also from the

social, political, cultural and historical point if view. It is

underdevelopment in its true sense which the nations suffers from

today; a people ruled by outsider for hundred of years have been

ruined morally and culturally and ethically, their pride and selfconfidence destroyed along with essential qualities that constitute a

nation.

Since its independence, Bangladesh have failed to develop a

stable political system. It has all kind of government, a large number

of political parties and an unaccountable number of political leaders

and activists, whose political ideologies fall nowhere. The genesis of

the present unstable politics in Bangladesh can be traced to the

autonomy movement and later the liberation war. In the process

Awami League marginalized other political parties and many of them

were wiped out within a short period after independence, the leader

transformed into an all-compassing entity. Just like him, her daughter

tried to institutionalize her personal charisma, but her temperament,

training and background made her suspicious, conspiratorial and

fearful of relinquishing powers.


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In such a state patronize political system. The main causality is

the people, who become superfluous in the system if not out right

redundant. Their role in governance of the state is limited only to

participation in state managed election. The ruler of the ruling party

never thinks of the people as an integral part, and the source of

political power, of governance and of the state. As a result, the

different actors in the society such as politicians, bureaucracy,

unscrupulous business entrepreneurs and the civil society remainsisolated and sometimes polarized and their economic and political

stake in government of the state converged for personal gain andpeople totally ignored.

One can not exaggerate the importance of social and political

institutions in economic development Modern economic growth

demand a stable, but flexible, political and social framework, capable

of accommodating rapid structural change and resolving the conflicts

that it generates while encouraging the growth promoting group in the

society (Kuznett). For various socio culture and economic reasons

most politicians in Bangladesh show little respect for democraticnorms and institutions.

Any form of opposition is seen with suspicion. What most politicians believe in is not governance as a form of competitive

politics under established rules, but a one party rule in presence of a

token opposition so that they can monopolize over both the

governance and the spoils of governance. It alienates people from the

ruling elites and in the process makes them cynical about the behavior

of the politicians. This is why most people have remained outside the

preview of the state in terms of their entitlements and obligations.

People hoped for a political break through and the beginning of a

stable political system. But for from a strong, effective and clean

government what the people got was an indecisive, inefficient and

complacent government. The consecutive political parties failed to

capitalize the good will of the people far a comprehensive economicchange and to capitalize the changing political mood of the people and

a stable reform oriented government came nowhere in sight. The

responsible behavior of the politicians is not only for their political

interest but obligations to a young nation that must came first and

prevail. Politicians have remained indulgent in petty personal politics

and lost their sense of purpose and direction. Politics has became a

self-serving business proposition in a rent seeking society. Political

parties sprang up mainly because it is still a very attractive business

proposition. Most of the leaders of parties have no professing of their

own and known source of income. In the name of politics they collectfund or donation, and live comfortably without paying any tax to the

state. As politics has become a soap opera whose chief end is pursuitof wealth, the governance of the state has been privatized. The

deterioration in the governance of the politics has contributed to the

gradual demobilization of the state. Government has degenerated into

an aggregation of a large number of individuals and groups moved by

their own private agendas rather than the direction of an omnipresent

state. The government is now an abstraction. Governance does not

derive direction of a coherent center with a clearly articulated vision

of society and a set of programs designed to materialize the vision.

Governance is no more than the aggregate of a large number ofdiscrete actions whose inspiration remains individual rather than

social.

Internal governance is non-existent. Within each party there is

a dominant personality who develops and maintains a well-defined

patron-client relationship with lower level leaders and workers. The

leader is the supreme authority whose personal blessing is the key to

political advancement in the party or in government. Such a system

gives way to a praetorian rule, thus creating a vicious circle of fission,

fusion and proliferation that ultimately result in political restlessness

and instability. Hence, there has to be change in both destructive

politics and politics of patronage. A well-fined and adaptive political

rules ensure organizational stability and political discipline and

responsibility get priority over speculative practices of politicians in

distributive politics.


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they are bailed out with serious implications for the health of macro

economy.

A competitive democratic political system under well defined

rules and norms can accommodate the political aspirations of the

people. Thus quality democratic political leaders are likely to replace

agitation morons who thrive on chaotic street politics rather than on

the high ideals of governance. There are no substitutes of an extensivetraining in economics. Constitutional form do not guarantee

governance. People should have an expectation and tradition ofgovernance. A long period of bad governance sets a low standard of

public behaviors and diminishes the chances for establishing better

govt.

This is clear in Bangladesh that we have to strive hard and the

civil society groups must play their role in paving the way towards

governance. Major problems of governance here is:

(1) The over developed and structured and corrupt bureaucracy is

the root cause of political uncertainty. The bureaucracy has atendency to thwart democratic policies and destroy the

process of development of political institutions. Uncertainly

of political stability has crippled the economic growth. Thegrowth is slow; investment inadequate, confidence weak and

security of people is nearly absent.

(2) Parliamentary system is also a curse of slow economic

growth. The party leadership can even disregard the views of

its own members since it would unseat a member who may

think and act otherwise.

(3) Unskilled manpower, low literacy, unreasonable labour

unrest, costly and ineffective legal system, inadequate

communication of information makes people indifferent.

(4) Lack of sustained leadership commitment, lack of public

participations hinders growth of democratic practice.

The disintegrations of colonial rule bought about a strange and

incongruous convergence of aspirations. The leaders of the

independence movement were to transform their devastated countries

into modern nation state, while the masses, which had often paid for

their victories with their blood, were hoping to liberate themselves

from both the old and the new forms of subjugation. As to the former

colonial masters, they were seeking a new system of domination, in

the hope that it would allow them to maintain their presence in the

colonies, in order to exploit there natural resources as well as to use

them as market for their expanding economies or as bases for theirgeo-political ambition. The myth of development emerged as an ideal

construct to meet the hopes of these three categories of actors.

For an important group, economics was the key to any kind of

development. For another, cultural and the social conditions proper to

each country had to prevail in any process of development. There are

others who wanted expert based and professionally managed

development and yet another group were for an endogenous, human

centered participatory bottom up or sustainable form of development.

This so called unanimous support for development was far from being

shared at the grass root level, where it was supposed to reach thesuffering populations. The ruled were never consulted by the

rulers. When the National leaders of anti colonial struggles took

over the movements emerging from the grass root, they succeeded inmaking them believe that material development was the best answer

to the demands. In absence of a long awaited source of regeneration-

moral and ideological, for which they had been looking for so long

appeared to be a deceitful mirage. The mirage ultimately transformed

into a recurring nightmare for millions. It had acted as a factor of

division rather than of liberation of any kind. It had mainly served to

strengthen the new alliances that were going to unite the interests of

the postcolonial foreign expansionists with those of the local leaders

in need of them for consolidation of their own power and positions.

This is how, under the banner of governance and progress, a tiny

minority of local profiteers, supported by their foreign patrons set out

to devastate the very foundation of social life. A merciless war waswaged against the age old traditions of solidarity. The victors of

simplicity and conviviality, of the wisdom of relying on each other


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were derided as signs of under development. A cultural of individual

success and of socially imputed needs led younger men to depart their

villages, leaving behind dislocated families of women, children and

older men who had no one to rely on but the promise of often

unattainable goods and services. Millions of men and women thus

mortally wounded in their bodies and souls, falling en masse into a

destitution for which they had never been culturally prepared. Thus

the gap between the haves and the have nots continue to reach evermore intolerable proportions, but the development ideologists attribute

its failures only to political or other causes external to thedevelopment ideology. The latest of this ideology is the concept of

global village, globalization. People of third world countries are

fearful of this term. Their words may be taken as subversive. But as

cardinal Arns of Sao Paulo defined it in his courageous statement in

the meet of Society for International Development in 1983 Subvert

means to turn a situation round and look at it from the other side, the

side of the people who have to die so that the system can go on. Our

voices are human centred. They represented a perception of reality

from the perspective of human being involved in the process ofchange. Our ideas are radical, not in the polemic sense often intended

to discredit free thinking, but in the etymological sense, going to the

roots (Latin-radix) of the question pertains to or effect what isfundamental. We would strive to create a generation that would go

quite far to defend the great ideologies most of which drew their

strength from the deeply humanistic traditions of all the worlds

cultures. We are not prone to discredit the virtues of the present

centuries but certainly to discover their extra ordinary corrupting

possibilities, particularly when they tend to colonize ones

autonomous capacity to search for the truth". According to Marshall

Sahlin, hunter/gatherer people were not poor, rather they were free.

They were indeed leading quite a simple and frugal life, yet as a rule,

their material needs were satisfied. According to Moroccan

economist Hassan Zaoual, the economic logic rests on the social soil

and the rational is nothing but the relational. What is rationalmust be relational.

Million of individuals and groups experiences, great traditions

of wisdom and virtue have converged to develop customs, beliefs,

institutions and methods of social control that cannot be dismissed or

worse, replaced from outside. The new concept of governance that is

thurst into the people, only reduces their perception of a good life to

abstract economic formula but threatens to destroy the flow of

civilized life. This ideology is becoming an immensely energizing tool

of policy and counter policy, a particular expert style which took awayfrom the majority the right to choose and even to understand why their

own experiences were increasingly being negated. A common searchfor good has vanished. There is not even a mini space in which we

care to agree on the pursuit of common good. Growth has been

identified with the good it claims to represent is not the quality of life

but the quantity of gadgets considered as useful by the mere fact that

they are being produced and consumed. Thus it is ceasing to be an

embodiment of civil society and a protector of the poor, the weak and

the oppressed. At a deeper level, scientific knowledge, is itself a

source of violence.

Indigenous people have always been intimately aware of their

symbiotic relationship with the earth based upon a delicate balance

between all living things. This understanding did not arise from aromanticized version of our relationship to the earth; it developed

before contact with other societies and was based upon the basic law.

Through the process of cultural evolution we have develop our

customs, belief, institutions and method of social control; our sense of

belongings and connectedness to the earth that arises out of the

original law to deal with plants, animals, minerals, human beings and

all life as if they are a part of ourselves, how we care for and utilize

the plants, animals and mineral gifts. We cant simply think of

ourselves and our survival. Each generation has a responsibility to

ensure the survival of the next generation.

Every thing can grow even by ceasing to develop. Applied tothe social field, development is the modified growth of the economic

organism. Development is a growth that is corrected, regulated and


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healthy and therefore a good growth. Economic development is the

trickle down effect of industrial growth. Growth has some social

effect; it benefits everyone to a greater on lesser degree. The benefit

of growth trickles down to the poor automatically benefiting from

creation of jobs and the increase in goods and service. But

development cannot be reduced to simple economic growth, it must

promote all sphere of all man and the whole men. The take off of the

western economy was a result of generalization of on ethics: one ofwork and the entrepreneurial spirit practiced with scrupulous honesty,

of enjoyment in making an effort, of rectitude, punctuality,renouncing sensual pleasure and of the habits of savings. They

attained the reality of good of well being which is really well

having, the quantity of gadgets considered as useful by the mere fact

that they are being produced and consumed. Economist are unanimous

in agreeing that accumulation cannot be achieved without a large

inequality in incomes. But the ideas should be rather than disputing

the shares in a small cake, it would to be better to agree on making the

cake bigger so that everyone has more and all have enough of it.

Growth depends on faith in progress and in techno science.

A democratic state in modern times has been a source of both

law and legitimacy of authority and the monopoly over coercivepower, a source also of security for the people, of systems of justice,

equity and accountability, and through them all, of condition of

freedom and creativity, the arts and the pursuit of excellence. It has

been the premier institution through which multiplicity and plurality

of the civil domain ordered in both perception and reality. Governance

began as both a philosophical idea and a political construct to deal

with wide spread condition of chaos and uncertainly and to provide

conditions of peace, order and security and of growth and

development. The nation state provided indentity in the world. The

state has either reduced all other corporate identities to individualized

identities or to some extent it admitted the existence of the corporate

identities in the form of a complex called civil society, it haspurported to be both the embodiment and the protector of such civil

society including embodiment of culture and their plurality. Out of

these search for centrality and legitimacy, despite so much diversity

all around, theoretical models defining the relationship between the

state and the individual or the state and the citizens emerged. We have

had the formal democratic liberal institutional model of the state based

on theory of accountability and the social democratic model of the

state assuming responsibility for social transformations and the

welfare of the people. In recent decades, with the growing

sensitization in the human dimensions, the struggle for civil anddemocratic rights is being waged with a view to ushering in a

decentralized sustainable and people centered structure of institutionsthat would promote social transformation--that is functional liberal

governance.

The state while it displaces growing use and misuse of the

coercive apparatus, continues to be a mediator among the contending

groups. Some of these claim the rights of diverse citizen groups and

others the privileges of a less divers yet differentiated structure of

entrenched interest and classes and bureaucracies. It is an increasingly

problematic yet still relevant arena encompassing the large diversityof both contending coalescing population and interest based on the

democratic aspirations of countless millions of people. The common

people, particularly the dalits(The downtrodden lower casteuntouchable in the Hindu fold) the general mass of the poor and

oppressed, the minorities and woman rests a considerable faith in the

state. But there is growing skepticism and doubt about its efficacy that

wishes the marginalization in the state role and status in civil society

accompanied by growing myopia, dehumanization and brutalization in

its relationship with the civil society, at the grassroots representing

new stirrings of consciousness and new assertions of power.

Governance as an institution is under sever strain. Never

beforehand a leadership in control of power and authority and an array

of instrumentalities to wield that power itself is about to dismantle the

whole apparatus, allowing them to go their own ways, completelyshifted its ideological moorings and proceeding to disperse the whole

frame work of power and authority and the sinews of the state. The


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crisis is accentuated by the rise of old and new powerful forces,

foreign lackies, fifth columnists and agents of geo-economics and

cultural hegemonism, that have emerged in the main area of the state,

is threatening governance and its survival as an institution, its role and

positions in human affairs.

The modern state, particularly a nation as a centralized

structure faces serious challenges from three major sources:(1) Technology seems to be replacing politics, socio-

economics and culture in the functioning of modern society, seriouslyaffecting the role of state in civil society. The impersonal forces of

technology and bureaucracy that were always there but were some

how held in check by ideological and political factors in a democratic

system that was competitive, pluralistic and open to debate and

controversy. Technology had ever been the instrument of man to serve

people, now it has taken by the imperial or hegemonist geo-economic

powers, upon themselves the task of organizing the whole world in

their own interest. The fast changing nature of global competition is

subjecting the whole of mankind and civilization to a captive state,deeply affecting governance and leadership, pushing the civil society

and the citizens to oblivion by homogenizing diverse culture and

social sectors and marginalizing the political process.(2) There is rising of assertion of cultures, ethnicity sub-

nationalities, pluralism with a vengeance, when entire society are

bursting their scams, while the tensions and violence generated by the

cult consumerism is spreading and destabilizing social arrangements.

The resulting state of anomie is precipitating the violence of terrorism,

governance is ceasing to be able to contain it and to be an

embodiment of civil society and a protector of the poor, the weak and

the oppressed.

(3) The other major challenge is a mindset, away from the old

ideology of liberty, equality and fraternity, away from the role of

governance in promoting these values; in making human greed and

avarice the prime movers of man and societies and yet offering tomankind a new ideology i.e. globalization. It promise of a new

integration of human enterprise, of joining diverse cultures and

civilizations into one single market place, nudging along governments

and elites and indeed the masses to catch up with this new fantasy. In

reality it is not integration based on diversity and on diverse entities

finding a common ground, but rather one based on cut throat

competition and rivalry, using whichever means work, giving a new

lease of life to the old extinct theory of survival of the fittest. The poor

and the already dispossessed are now considered to be a surplus and to

be dispensed with. To survive, governance must emerge as aphilosophical idea to deal with the situation of growing chaos and

uncertainty and confusion, promising both order and justice inconducting the affairs of globalization. It must expose the modern

project of the hegemonist geo-economic forces to throw the world

once again to chaos and confusion and of course uncertainty and

without order of justice and adopt corrective measures now.

The profound crisis of human identity brought on by living

within a lie, a crisis which in turn makes such a life possible, certainly

possess a moral dimension as well it appears as a deep moral crisis in

society. A person who has been seduced by the consumer valuesystem, whose identity is dissolved in an amalgam of accoutrements

of mass civilization and who has no roots in the order of being, so

sense of responsibility for anything higher then own personal survivalis a demoralized person. The system depends on this demoralization,

deepens it, as in fact a projection of it into society. Living within the

truth, as humanity reflects against an enforced position rediscovering

human identity is an attempt to regain control over ones own sense of

responsibility. Any alternative political idea must consider the nature

and future prospects of these ideas and that must necessarily reflect

the moral dimension as a political phenomenon. The development

ideology shattered this familiar universe where human relation

predominated and where the strong desire to tackle common needs

together formed the part of the language of mutual help and hope. At

the local or national level, it soon appeared to many that the

development idea carried with it new forms of domination anddescretion they had never previously known. Some were programmed

to become rich and have greater purchasing powers. But peoples


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actual power to take autonomous decisions concerning their own lives

considerably reduced, as all the power centers moves towards the

modern techno political and economic apparatuses set up around the

capital of the nation state and thus developed unprecidented form of

control and subjugation over their population.

While these national governments were increasing their

domination over their own people, they become weaker and moredependent on foreign preservations. As the need for money to

strengthen their repressive forces and bases and, with nationalresources often far below development needs, most had to accept the

drastic conditions that were imposed on them by their former colonial

masters camouflaged now called as partners in development. As a

result, the new nation state, which its people originally welcomed as

an institution to protect them against foreign predators, itself become

a permanent threat to everyone, and any questioning of its relevance

system called for out right repression even extermination. It is the

third world where human ingenuity can peacefully outwit machined

might. Only free men can change their minds and be surprised to seewhile no men are completely free, some are freer than others.

Bangladesh became independent in 1971. Over the yearssuccessive regimes-political, military and pseudo political have

produced a plethora of politics embracing almost every dimension of

public life. There policies did not care for ideological orientation but

for political interests of the ruling party. Politics of the three types of

regimes were attuned to attain goals that were parochial in nature and

short term. Certain insignificant policy areas have received priority

over others relatively important. The outcome in most cases proved

counter productive, thus abating public expectations and raising

suspicion on the credibility of the government. The basic issues and

problem of governance are yet to be completely resolved.

Being one of the most impoverished nations in the world it isnot atypical for the government to play a dominant role in society.

The state is involved in a myriad of activities ranging from meeting

the basic need of the people to managing a large and growing public

sector. Inevitably it is the largest employer, investor and entrepreneur.

It has to function socio-economic equality, poor industrial and

agriculture performance, and continuing dependent on foreign aid and

above all administrative dysfunction that pose question about the

efficacy of policies.

An important point is the mighty iniquitous socialconfiguration. Political and economic power is concentrated in a few

hands. The vast majority of the people languish on the peripheries ofsocial scene. It is a go by situation to the imperatives of social justice.

Without establishment of a just social order to enable the marginalized

multitude to be drawn into the mainstream of national activity the

vision of national progress and development will forever remain a

mirage. The rich and powerful are fortifying their position by

integrating themselves with undemocratic foreign financial

institutions. We have almost surrendered our right to judge whether

their dictates handed down to us advance or impede the countrys

interest. Once we seriously embark on a comprehensive, program ofdeveloping our human capability and use it better it is possible to get

out of this rut and can have a freer hand in the framing of policies and

formulation of development programs and their implementation inkeeping our own needs and interests. All out hard efforts must be

made at the local level to mobilize the people in a manner as would

encourage them to take part in infrastructure building and resource

generating activities. Expansion and diversification of local level

development activities by making maximum use of vast reservoir of

unutilized human and material resources are of crucial importance in

the context of a people oriented development strategy. Right kind of

institutions should be built as for this strategy to succeed. In many

areas of national development, appropriate policies have been framed

in relation to national needs and aspirations, but they failed in the

execution because of lack of commitment and expertise and

corruption. The leadership has been found in wanting in its capabilityto ensure proper implementation of projects and programs. Even if the

strategy of people oriented and people centered development was


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accepted and necessary policies and programs formulated, unless

followed through in order would not bring about the desired result.

Here lies the question of leadership. To put the nation on high road to

progress we need a truly accountable leadership at both central and

local level with both political and administrative responsibilities well

defined for each level.

Democratic institutions have to be established at all levels ofthe administration keeping the bureaucracy under control, right from

the center down to the smallest unit level, so that peoples participationin democratic governance is ensured and dilatoriness in decision

making is eliminated. Bureaucracy must not have higher hand for

establishing governance in a democratic polity. Stringent rules and

regulations should be introduced and the role of peoples

representatives in their observance must be ensured to eliminate abuse

of power by any functionary. The short sightedness and lack of

commitment of political leaders to the interests of the nation in

preference over those of self, social groups, as much as grafts and

misrule of wielders of power nipped nations possibilities in the budand have further compounded problems. New opportunities have

opened up before the nation with the introduction of liberalism in

Bangladesh politics with a clear vision. Though there is no crisis ofcommitment and strategy, gap in capacity still exists. Masses should

be helped to realize their potential so that they come forward with

confidence on themselves and be ready to apply their talents and labor

to nation building activities. Leadership must be built up from among

the people. Interested quarters whether in politics and those in

position of leadership in different areas of activities and those who

constitute civil society should be inspired to take nation building as a

sacred duty and march united towards forming a true democratic state

nation. It is a great responsibility. No real actor have any excuse to

disappoint the people.

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