WHY CARETAKER GOVERNMENT IS A VITAL ISSUE

The caretaker system of governments has been effective to hold a free and fair election in the rigging prone Bangladesh elections since 1990. The main opposition has asked for a reform in the system and the ruling party is cautiously planning to keep the chief justice of their choice, who will take the helm the caretaker government raising the retirement age bar. Then there is the tradition of outburst of our defeated political parties of not accepting the results of any election citing irregularities and rigging. So it is unlikely that whether you will ever hear of any free & fair election in Bangladesh under any neutral body.

However, One thing I must say about the previous caretaker governments, that it has proved to be functional in Bangladesh because a single political party could not win all the successive elections in Bangladesh since 1990. An editorial in the Financial Times comments:

The caretaker issue has the potential to become explosive for anti-government campaign. The government has to face the opposition with logical arguments and not on the basis of two-thirds majority.

For the benefit of all, the caretaker form of government should be intact in the upcoming 2007 election. If any reform is really needed that must be with the consensus of all the parties. Let not this be a lame opposition issue to desparately win election.