A govt plagued with phobia

by Israfil Khosru

AS ITS tenure nears end, the Awami League-led

government looks increasingly like a regime in utter
fear and paranoia. It seems to have developed
phobia of certain individuals. I use the word phobia
here simply because the governments fear seems
to have become persistent and shows no sign of
abating. We all know who these individuals are but
what is absolutely intriguing is the fact that an
elected government of a country feel threatened by
them. The governments phobia of Professor
Muhammad Yunus seems to have reached a
pinnacle with him being touted as an astute
politician and being pigeonholed as an individual
embarking on a global mission to destroy
Bangladesh. Yunus does not only represent an
institution but in most global forums he represents
Bangladesh, and that too as a country respected for
ever improving social indicators and a shining
example in forwarding empowerment of women.
One might simply ask: what is it about Yunus that
makes the government so insecure? Apart from the
fact that he created an institution that is being
emulated and replicated in various parts of the
world, Yunus himself is the most recognisable
Bangladeshi today. While most of the western world

might not be aware of the achievements and

failures of the Bangladesh government, they are
well aware of the achievements of Yunus and his
Grameen Bank model. That is where I believe the
real
problem
lies.
In our current political culture characterised by ego
and sycophancy, one is led to believe recognition
can be obtained rather easily. While Yunus
dedicated most of his working life to create an
institution based on certain principles, the AL
government seems to implicitly project that their
achievements in developing the nation is far greater.
First and foremost, if the government of a country,
elected by the people to serve the nation with all
possible resources at its disposal, wants to compare
itself to a citizen who has achieved something
reverential for the nation, it could only be interpreted
as a manifestation of the governments lack of
confidence in its own achievements. Secondly, if the
government in reality believe that it has made
substantial progress and notable developments
benefiting the nation, inability to project this
particular image on to the world stage is the failure
of the governments publicity machinery and no fault
of Yunus. It is evident that the insecurity lies within
the government and Yunus phobia is just an
expression
of
it.
If the fixation with Yunus was not enough,

resurfacing of the BNP senior vice-chairperson

Tarique Rahman in the public media seems to have
now given birth to a renewed fear and obsession for
the government. Its initial reaction was to issue a
warrant through Interpol to enable his repatriation
from the United Kingdom where he is currently
residing. Although the matter is still pending, the
Awami League governments actions clearly show
that it now fears a possible rejuvenation and
mobilisation of the main opposition with Tarique
visible again. The recent results in the city
corporation polls are not helping the matter either.
The governments next most likely course of action
would be to indulge in further character
assassination of Tarique Rahman and expedite trial
of the cases against him. However, such practices
are not likely to yield anything. The only way of
redemption for the government at this point is
simply delivering on the issues of national
importance but so far we have only seen them
opening several unnecessary fronts, on which they
cannot
fight.
If the Awami League government remains
increasingly paranoid about the organisation,
regrouping and future leadership of its main
opposition, it is already in essence admitting defeat
and failure. While the BNP has made it blatantly
clear that it sees Tarique Rahman as the future chief

of the party, it is up to the people decide how far he

will go. Hijacking Grameen Bank is not likely to yield
anything positive for the future either and in recent
times we have seen Professor Yunus come up with
some sharp replies to certain statements made
about him by several members of the government. If
the Awami League is to salvage anything at the end
of its tenure it needs to break out of this phobia and
focus on governance itself. However, time seems to
be running out and they are showing no signs of
backing
down.
Israfil Khosru is a businessman and runs a
youth led think-tank called The Bangladeshi.