Educating people about privatisation
Thursday, 3 June 2010
Privatisation is a policy which ought to enjoy a broad consensual support in the country. Apart from the left political parties, none of the main political parties in the country with parliamentary representation are opposed to privatisation in principle. Therefore, privatisation should have accelerated logically in Bangladesh in the last decade.
The present main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), started their last tenure in government by making some major moves in the way of privatisation. The same created hopes that it would probably push through privatisation with decisiveness. But after about a year, they decided to go slow or put a brake on efforts at substantial privatisation.
Successive governments formed by the major political parties have, thus, back-pedalled on privatisation notwithstanding the broad unity of views among them about privatisation. Such a disposition is indeed unfortunate. The parties have feared the pressure of trade unions, employees to be affected by privatisation and the vested interest groups who want the state sectors to continue.
Clearly, their existed ways of getting round the anticipated backlash to be mounted by anti- privatisation groups. But these ways were not explored.
The interest groups that want to block privatisation are really very small though they are more vocal and can be influential in emphasising their stand. Thus, governments should have gone to the people with enough publicity on a regular basis to make the people generally aware of the positive side of privatisation.
Naimul Hasan
Baridhara, Dhaka
The present main opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), started their last tenure in government by making some major moves in the way of privatisation. The same created hopes that it would probably push through privatisation with decisiveness. But after about a year, they decided to go slow or put a brake on efforts at substantial privatisation.
Successive governments formed by the major political parties have, thus, back-pedalled on privatisation notwithstanding the broad unity of views among them about privatisation. Such a disposition is indeed unfortunate. The parties have feared the pressure of trade unions, employees to be affected by privatisation and the vested interest groups who want the state sectors to continue.
Clearly, their existed ways of getting round the anticipated backlash to be mounted by anti- privatisation groups. But these ways were not explored.
The interest groups that want to block privatisation are really very small though they are more vocal and can be influential in emphasising their stand. Thus, governments should have gone to the people with enough publicity on a regular basis to make the people generally aware of the positive side of privatisation.
Naimul Hasan
Baridhara, Dhaka