People concerned about whether election will be meaningful even if it is fair: Debapriya

There is widespread public concern over whether the 2026 election will be meaningful, even if it is fair, according to Debapriya Bhattacharya, convener of Citizen's Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh.

Institutional weaknesses, corruption and excessive concentration of power over the past one and a half decades have narrowed Bangladesh's civic space, Debapriya said while speaking at an event today (13 January), discussing the context for that concern.

The direction of state-building set after independence has seen phases of ups and downs, adding that a truly "democratic, just and participatory state system" has yet to be fully realised, the economist said at the opening session of a discussion titled "Unveiling the Citizens' Manifesto and the 2026 National Election: Citizens' Expectations" in Dhaka.

According to him, the 1990 anti-autocracy movement was the second major turning point in state formation after independence. However, even after that, no successful attempt was made to break the country's fragile and limited structures and undertake fundamental reforms.

Debapriya, a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue, criticised the governance of the last one and a half decades, saying the shrinking space for freedom of expression, institutional fragility, corruption and excessive concentration of power have created a deep governance crisis.

In his words, it was this crisis that culminated in the July Uprising in 2024.

He mentioned that the nation has strongly pushed back against authoritarianism, fear, intimidation and lack of accountability at three critical moments: in 1971, 1990 and 2024.

Referring to concerns raised by citizens during dialogues organised by the Citizen's Platform for SDGs across the country, Debapriya said people are questioning whether the election, even if conducted fairly, will actually be meaningful.

They are asking whether the voices of marginalised communities, women, religious and ethnic minorities, and disadvantaged groups will be reflected in the election, or whether the country will once again return to its old trajectory, he added.

He reiterated that the bigger question is not whether the election will be fair, but whether it will be meaningful.

In this context, he described the "citizens' manifesto" presented by the platform as a "collective bargaining tool" for the people, which will be refined and made more pragmatic over time.

The manifesto was prepared through a participatory process spanning more than 150 days, including regional consultation meetings in eight divisional cities, 15 youth workshops, and the collection of opinions both online and in person, he said.

Through this manifesto, citizens have articulated demands related to security, employment, good governance, recognition of indigenous peoples, environmental protection, cultural security and freedom, Debapriya said at the event.

Despite this extensive process, Debapriya questioned whether the existing political power structure is ready to absorb and respond to civic pressure.

Drawing on past political experience, he noted that many visions, white papers and reform proposals from civil society have reached the centres of power in the past but failed to translate into effective change.

He stressed that policy proposals alone are not enough; ensuring accountability in implementation is the core challenge.

To that end, he mentioned the Reform Tracker initiative, through which demands are being made to monitor progress in implementing reforms.