BNP’s hunt for election candidates throws stalwarts under the bus

by Manik Miazee in Dhaka Tribune, August 25, 2017
With elections little more than a year away, Khaleda Zia’s BNP is working around the clock to select the ideal candidates for the 300 seats. But what does the Bangladesh Nationalist Party look for in an “ideal” candidate?
Khaleda Zia has identified three key characteristics she wants in the 900 potential candidates who will vie for the 300 seats:
A clean image with no prior allegations of corruption or criminal records
Young, enterprising businessmen
Excellent connections with bureaucrats, armed forces and foreign companies
Several BNP leaders have confided that the search for the ideal candidates is simultaneously taking place while the internal feuds are being mitigated.
The BNP high command has scoured the nation and has listed 900 such individuals. From them, 300 will be selected to represent BNP in the 2019 General Election. But the final round of selection has been mired by internal strife and BNP’s prioritisation of the new criteria over party loyalty and seniority..
Some top leaders have claimed that the government’s oppression has broken the organisational structure of the party at the grassroots level. In response, several local leaders have said that many senior leaders have not even visited their constituencies over the past three years, much less communicate with the grassroots. Some even alleged that the lack of initiative from senior leaders prompted thousands of BNP followers to jump ship to Awami League.
But one-third of the shortlisted candidates will have no chance to contest the polls. Even the ones who are wholeheartedly dedicated to BNP could be rolled over.
Even if a candidate has no corruption allegations and is quite popular, businessmen who can fund the campaigns will be selected ahead of party stalwarts.
In addition, another 100 may also be disqualified on allegations of being “reformists,” a label that BNP abhors deeply.
The party also seems to favour the families of those who have been found dead or disappeared over the past decade.
Narayanganj, an eye opener
Before the Narayanganj city corporation election, Khaleda sat with the city leaders to resolve outstanding feuds which threatened the chances of BNP winning. But she could not do enough in time to recover the damage wrought by the infighting. Many local leaders have alleged BNP had enough votes to clinch a win that eventually got away from it.
Following the loss, the BNP chairperson dispatched senior leaders to the districts to sort out the problems. The senior leaders engaged the local leaders to sort out the issues that have arisen over the years, all in an effort to rebuild their support base from the ground up.
The Khaleda contingency
The party gets its instructions from Khaleda Zia, then Tareque Rahman and then the Standing Committee. But in absence of the chairperson, their strategy formulation is in a quagmire.
BNP is struggling to develop a contingency plan in the event of Khaleda Zia’s conviction in any of the numerous cases she has been charged with.
BNP Standing Committee Member Gayeswar Chandra Ray said when the party leaders visit the districts and other local level unit, they observe the conditions and report back their findings to Khaleda Zia for her opinion on the matter.
He said: “First we check how popular they are, then their acceptability among all the communities and finally how financially solvent they are.”
Another major BNP leader, who declined to be named, said no matter what criteria is set, the BNP chairperson has the final say in all things.http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/politics/2017/08/25/bnps-hunt-election-candidates-throws-stalwarts-bus/