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2 FRIDAY, AUGUST 18, 2017 DT News Which way will Ershad go? Jatiya Party chief pursues a three-pronged strategy ahead of national elections • Manik Miazee POLITICS With just over a year to go until the next general election, Jatiya Party (JaPa) Chairman Hussain Muhammad Ershad is weighing several campaign options, hoping to place his party as the main opposition. JaPa, which became the principal opposition in parliament by default with the second highest number of seats after BNP boycotted the last polls, is currently pursuing at least three alternative routes, according to sources. The first and foremost option, which has taken shape in the last few months, is taking part in the election under the banner of a new coalition composed of leftist and democratic political parties, sources and JaPa leaders have said. The second alternative is the 58-party United National Alliance (UNA), which JaPa leads, formed in May with mostly Islamist parties. The third option is going solo. However, Ershad is not very hopeful of doing well in the election with UNA because of various reasons, while leaders of a number of the allied parties have so far shown no respect for his decisions, sources said. Whichever way Ershad chooses, JaPa is already preparing to contest in all 300 constituencies across the country, like it did in the 2014 election. According to members of the Presidium, the party’s highest policymaking body, Ershad is cautious about making decisions regarding the 11th parliamentary polls and is currently juggling different options. A JaPa central leader, requesting anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune: “He (Ershad) has asked party leaders to maintain communications with all potential allies. GM Quader is communicating with the leftist and democratic parties, two others with Awami League and BNP, and Ruhul Amin Howlader with UNA. “At the moment, even I’m not sure which way we’ll go. Most probably, as per his characteristics, he’ll decide at the last minute.” The Jatiya Party took part in the 2008 polls as a partner in the Grand Alliance led by Awami League (AL). It, however, contested separately in the last election and is now the main opposition in the House. But it still has a stake in the government with a minister and two state ministers while Ershad serves as a special envoy to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. However, Ershad, known for his unpredictable political moves and Now Jatiya Party is not what it was in the past. We’re now a big factor in politics. There’ll be no election without us and no one will be able to gain power without us statements, recently has been taking shots at both AL and BNP over various issues. After the recent deadly landslides and floods in the country, the former president had said that these natural disasters were like ‘the wrath of Allah coming down on the AL government’. He also criticised the current law and order situation, saying it was the worst in the country’s history. Taking a dig at BNP, Ershad recently said that Khaleda Zia’s party was the main obstruction to the country’s development. “Bangladesh would have surpassed Dubai and Singapore by now if its progress wasn’t delayed by BNP’s destructive activities during its anti-government movements.” While throwing jabs at both AL and BNP, Ershad is keeping things close to the chest before deciding the way to go for the next polls due between late 2018 and early 2019. “Now Jatiya Party is not what it was in the past. We’re now a big factor in politics. There’ll be no election without us and no one will be able to gain power without us,” Ershad said yesterday in Sherpur, reports UNB. He also said they were making JaPa stronger as now there is a bright prospect for them to return to power with people’s votes. Despite all the confusions inside the party, JaPa had given Ershad a grand reception, the biggest he has received in recent memory, on the day he returned from India last month. The leftist and democratic one? Sources inside JaPa told the Dhaka Tribune that Ershad has been mostly maintaining good relations with the leaders of several leftist and democratic parties, who have been talking about forming a third bloc beyond the coalitions headed by AL and BNP. On August 2, Ershad’s brother and JaPa Co-Chairman GM Quader had joined a meeting at Bikalpadhara Bangladesh President AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury’s Baridhara residence. Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) President ASM Abdur Rab, Nagorik Oikya Convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna and Gano Forum’s Executive President Subrata Chowdhury also attended that meeting. JSD General Secretary Abdul Malek Ratan said that meeting had discussed the possibility and potential of forging the new alliance. Rab had hosted another gathering at his Uttara house on the night of July 13 with Badruddoza, Krishak Sramik Janata League chief Abdul Kader Siddique, Manna and Subrata in attendance among others before police gatecrashed it. These parties and ten others will form the new alliance, according to sources. UNA – The hopeless second choice? Jatiya Party also hopes the new coalition – UNA – that HM Ershad formed three months ago with 57 other parties will serve as an alternative to the AL-led 14-party and the BNP-led 20-party alliances. The UNA comprises JaPa, Bangladesh Islamic Front, the 34-party Islamic Moha Jote, and the 22-party Bangladesh Jatiya Jote. But only the first two parties are currently registered with the Election Commission. Announcing the alliance’s formation, Ershad had said: “We have come together because we hold the same political ideology, Islamic values, sense of nationality and respect for all religious communities.” However, sources inside the Islamist parties have said that most of the UNA members want the three JaPa ministers to resign from the AL-led government. Since January, Ershad on several occasions said that the JaPa leaders will leave the cabinet “very soon”. But, the JaPa ministers and Ershad are yet to resign from their ministerial and special envoy posts. COURTESY With that issue dragging and other unregistered alliance members, UNA is yet to join the political arena actively and that has made Ershad hopeless about its future, sources said. They said only 11 out of 58 parties had attended the first alliance meeting in May. Many alliance leaders did not even respect Ershad’s decisions and showed that openly there. Time to go solo? On the other hand, several JaPa central leaders said that Chairman Ershad has asked them to make preparations for participating in the election on their own if the other options fail. According to sources, Ershad has given this directive to more than 100 party leaders across the country, fearing the UNA move may not work. If BNP boycotts the next polls too, then JaPa plans to become the main opposition in parliament as an individual political party even if they lose the ballot to AL, sources said. Several times in the last few months, Ershad has said that JaPa now has a good chance to take the mantle of second biggest political party in the country from BNP. What AL and BNP think On JaPa issue, AL Presidium Member Abdur Razzak told the Dhaka Tribune: “Our plan until now is to go into the election as the 14-party alliance. We have no separate plans for Jatiya Party at the moment. But we’ll consider adding them in our coalition if they wish to join us.” However, several central leaders of JaPa have said that they wish to remain by AL’s side in the next polls. A JaPa Presidium member, requesting anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune: “There is still a possibility that we’ll join the polls with AL as allies. There has been no disagreement or tension between the two parties. “The 11th national polls will be different than the last one. BNP has also hinted about participating in the election. The 14-party alliance is preparing a strategy for that.” BNP Standing Committee Member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy told the Dhaka Tribune: “HM Ershad will take the route he finds in his favour like always. But I think he will only choose the path his master, whoever that is, asks him to take.” When asked who Ershad’s ‘master’ was, Gayeshwar skirted a direct answer. “He (Ershad) does not live by his own rules. He will never disobey his masters abroad.” •
News FRIDAY, 3 AUGUST 18, 2017 DT Trump’s crisis spurs talk of White House departures • Reuters, New York WORLD US President Donald Trump’s turnabout on the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia has rocked his administration, leading to rising speculation that some top officials may be looking for a way out. A parade of business executives broke ties with Trump on Wednesday, a day after he blamed white nationalists and counter-protesters in equal measure for the weekend clashes that left one woman dead. Now, frustrated aides could be next. Trump’s remarks have left some wondering if sticking by the president comes at too high a cost to their reputations. It was hoped that retired General John Kelly, Trump’s new chief of staff, could impose some form of discipline on Trump that his predecessor, Reince Priebus, could not. But Kelly stood with his eyes fixed on the floor when Trump veered off-script at his Manhattan office tower on Tuesday. The president accused the protesters, who 16th Amendment debate: Here is what you need to know • Tribune Desk JUDICIARY The Supreme Court’s decision to scrap the 16th Amendment to the constitution, nullifying parliament’s power to remove sitting judges, has given rise to a heated debate about the respective powers of the judiciary and the legislature. The apex court’s observations on Bangladesh’s history and politics have also drawn protests from government ministers. Here we explain the main points of contention. What is the 16th Amendment? The 16th Amendment to the constitution — passed on September 17, 2014— empowered parliament to remove judges of the Supreme Court for their incompetence or misconduct based on a two-thirds majority. Ministers said the amendment harked back to the first constitution, drawn up in 1972, which bestowed on members of parliament the right to impeach judges. That power was transferred to the president following the fourth Amendment to the constitution in 1975. Later, the fifth Amendment, brought in during military ruler Ziaur Rahman’s regime, legalised the formation of a Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) to impeach judges. Why it was declared illegal In light of the State vs Masdar Hossain US citizens residing in Argentina hold anti-Trump signs as they protest outside the US Embassy against a visit by US Vice President Mike Pence in Buenos Aires, Argentina on August 15, 2017 REUTERS rallied against neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups in Charlottesville, of being “very, very violent.” In the uproar that followed, chief executives at companies such as Merck & Co Inc, Under Armour case verdict, the judiciary was separated from the executive and legislative organs on November 1, 2007. The Supreme Court scrapped the 16th Amendment on the ground that it undermined the independence of the judiciary. Nullifying parliament’s power to remove judges, the apex court reinstated the Supreme Judicial Council for the removal of errant judges. “Neither individual judges nor the judiciary should be accountable to the executive,” according to the verdict. Who will remove judges now? In its ruling, the apex court said the power of impeachment was now automatically transferred to the Supreme Judicial Council since the 16th Amendment was void. The SJC was a much more transparent process, the seven-member bench said in its verdict. Disagreeing with the court, Law Minister Anisul Huq claimed: “A court cannot make a law or order retention of its earlier version. It can only define the law.” Why is the government unhappy? Ruling party lawmakers are dissatisfied with the verdict because they think the legislature in a parliamentary democracy should have more authority compared to the judiciary. Secondly, the present Awami League-led government feels that the image of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Inc, Intel Corp, Campbell Soup Co and 3M Co quit advisory councils to the White House. Trump then dissolved the councils. The exodus of executives sparked talk that Gary Cohn, was “undermined” through the Supreme Court observation that “No nation, no country is made of or by one person.” What does the verdict say about Bangladesh’s history? “If we want to truly live up to the dream of Sonar Bangla as advocated by our Father of the Nation, we must keep ourselves free from this suicidal mindset and addiction to ‘I alone’, that only one person or one man did all this,” Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said in his observation on the verdict. He also remarked on the state of politics, martial law, Election Commission, corruption and independence of the judiciary. “Now power, not merit, tends to control all public institutions of the country. It is an irony that while unflinching determination and indomitable spirit enabled us to free a country from the clutches of a military power, we have been measurably defeated by ourselves in that very free country,” it said. Criticising the last two martial law regimes, the court observed: “After independence, unholy alliances of power-mongers reduced this country to a banana republic twice. They bluffed and hoodwinked the people to legitimise their illegal exercise of power.” What will the government do? Asked about the government’s stand, Trump’s top White House economic adviser and a key liaison to the US business community, might resign in protest as well. David Shulkin, US secretary of Veterans Affairs, told reporters on Law Minister Anisul Huq said they would likely seek a review to get “objectionable and irrelevant” statements, particularly political observations made by Chief Justice in the judgment, expunged. He also hinted at further amending the constitution, if deemed necessary, in the future. What BNP says In its immediate reaction, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, or BNP, termed the judgment historic, saying it aptly highlighted the prevailing political scenario in the country. The government has taken the judiciary as its opponent, it said. Coming down hard on the law minister and Awami League leaders for criticising the judgment, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said: It is the law minister’s duty to implement the verdict, not to take a stand against the judiciary. By slamming the verdict, he [Anisul Huq] deviated from his moral duties for political expediency.” Why the judiciary and the executive are at loggerheads The ongoing row between the two organs has resulted from disagreement over the issue of the judiciary’s separation. Both the chief justice and ministers frequently exchanged heated words over the formulation of a code of conduct for lower court judges. Added to that is the apex court’s refusal to Wednesday that as a Jewish American, he was “outraged” by neo-Nazis and other white supremacist groups and felt obligated to speak out against them. Steve Bannon, a White House senior adviser with close ties to far-right groups, told the American Prospect in an interview published Wednesday that he constantly butts heads with Cohn over issues such as trade with China. “That’s a fight I fight every day here,” Bannon said. Cowan and Company, a financial services firm, said on Wednesday that the departure of the pragmatic and business-friendly Cohn could adversely affect markets. Trump thinks highly of Cohn and has spoken often of the financial sacrifices he made to leave Goldman to join the administration. He is widely considered to be a leading candidate to chair the US Federal Reserve should Trump choose not to retain Janet Yellen. That decision would insulate Cohn from the day-to-day drama of the Trump White House, but likely is months away. • accept a draft of the code of conduct submitted recently by the government. During court proceedings, government officials raised objections against what they saw as ‘political comments’ by the Chief Justice. Chief Justice SK Sinha in his reply said he would continue to speak out for the sake of the welfare of the judiciary even if critics described these as political remarks. Political implications The verdict came at a time when the Pakistan Supreme Court declared the country’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif unfit for office. Sharif stepped down as premier of Pakistan, complying with the judgment. Leaders of the ruling Awami League in Bangladesh are concerned about what they see as judicial overreach in the 16th Amendment verdict. They also fear that the court may make more such moves in the future. However, Chief Justice Sinha urged everyone not to play any political games over the verdict. “The court will welcome constructive criticism, but its judges should not fall into the trap laid by the government or the opposition,” he said. When will Sinha retire? SK Sinha took office as chief justice on January 17, 2015 and will retire in January, 2018. •
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