At the very least, the people of Bangladesh should be able to keep the criminal, the corrupt, and the compromised from running in the upcoming elections
Everything you wanted to know about the PEPS survey. A closer reading of the survey's findings unearths a treasure trove of information for the political parties and the general public. Too many commentators have only looked at the surface, hence they are missing the true insights.
Each missing gun is a potential shooting at a street corner, a robbery, a killing. As national elections approach, the fear is not hypothetical. It is Chekhov’s gun multiplied by a thousand: if a weapon hangs on the wall in Act I, it must go off by Act III. And Act III is the election.
Nearly nine out of ten respondents support the February election timing, nearly seven out of ten believe the Interim Government will deliver it, and over nine out of ten say that they will vote.
Unless we reach a consensus on key issues such as the July Charter and constitutional reforms, debating whether the elections should be held in February or April are meaningless. With consensus, February makes most sense. Without consensus even April may not happen.
The only meaningful item remaining on the reform agenda is whether an Upper House should be based on PR or not. Everything else can be sorted out without difficulty. We are closer to consensus than you think.
