Once, as a teen, I was a serious listener of Prof. Z Iqbal's thoughts as well as his nice and touching way of presentations. I thank him for bringing some of the very important issues particulary in the last half of the second part and in the third part of his writing.
It's a real pitty to see him batting for some quarters with his gifted writing skills. Let me first drop the funny emotions, always he starts with, to catch audience. He doesn't understand the things, I don't believe it. He understands a certain quarter and their motives quite well, as I remember he wrote an article in Prothom Alo, where he mongered the same emotion that students telephoned him with tears and told that all of their hopes are dashed, as Dr. Iazuddin took over as CA. I don't understand why they so frequently cry only to him over national issues. I just like to ask him whether he hears the cry of the SUST students and their guardians, when their academic life prolongs there for months and years. May be not, as then he plays mentoring role for one group. Prof. Iqbal is so disgusted with 4 party alliance rule, no harm as many people are, but he never talked about simple civic norm that unless a new law is enacted we should abide by existing laws. He never wrote that the parties themselves have to end impasse over selection of head of CTG in 2006. He supported one party (of course the other party doesn't do as well)not trusting on people's power. I have not heard him urging people and political parties to compromise on CTG issue, and go for votes immidiately. I believe that if AL went in election in 2006 even under Justice Hasan, AL would have won with huge margin, as the people were looking for alternatives desparately. No Justice Hasan or any designed administration could prevent people from deciding on their options, as 4 party alliance's public balance sheet was so fargile. We saw him just to add his name in the long list of statement givers and fuelling cheap emotions of fear mongering. As per his ideas, any alternative party other other than the 4 party alliance could deliver the remedies of wide spread misrules (a generally vegue measurement, current CTG could solve this argument by publishing a White Paper), he didn't encourgae his aspired parties to go for people's mandate and work for them, , may be he is not free to express his ideas. It's a shame to see him to digest (in some way be happy with) military intervention (an 'important' job done by army), I want to ask him whether any kid cried to him about loss of freedom of speach and over watched life, and what he told them. I'm astonished to see how he can beg from an undemocratic and unconstitutional government (where he is sure that President breached constitution). I am sure he has a good memory, where he should also remember about irregularities of other than 4 pary alliance. I am sure he has quite forgot anomalies of other governments in public universities, if he just puts an extra effort he can see many masterminds of those misdeeds around him. May be he doesn't want it. Now he is skeptic about current judiciary and of course with a reason that some people are not receiving something desired from it. He wasn't even pleased with previous system, what he wants? Any oppression, injustice and irregularity must be dealt with an iron fist at the first available opportunity, no matter minority, majority, or political identity, Prof. Iqbal doesn't pioneer this simple but fundamental civic norm.
I am not trying to trash Prof. Iqbal, rather I have full support for his demands, and I even will be honored to work with him, relating to fair and efficient national resource planning and allocation, reforming education system, ensuring social justice equally for all ethnic and religious groups, environmetal protection and conservation, and of course bringing war criminals under justice system. My point to Prof. Iqbal is that you are demanding these from political parties, while you have short of trust on political system, as you accepted so called 'important role of army' and you beileve on monrachic power of current kangaroo CTG.
Look at India, all the political and social evils we have, may be they have more than us. They are doing progress more than us. What worked for them? How Manmohan Singh or P. Chidambaram came to driving seat? Of course not by staying safe from chaos, writing cynical articles and discussing in round tables (may be also square and other forms of tables too) lamenting about absence of appropriate environment. Environment doesn't come from sky, it has to be created through everybody's contribution. You can do it by writing your articles too, but please be comitted to full disclosure of facts, be honest and expressive in your ideas. You can choose BNP, AL, or any ideology, but please give up pretending.
I really wish Prof. Iqbal to be Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky, Paul Krugman or alike of Bangladesh, if you want to serve people with your writings, otherwise Manmohan Singh or P. Chidambaram, if you want to serve people with direct effect. In between these roles makes you too ordinary and look like one among the lost potential Bangladeshis.
