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However, seven months on, the decisions made by the Yunus-led interim government have made Bangladesh weaker. Bangladesh, which was giving tough competition to countries such as India in the textile garment sector, is now going through its worst economic and food crisis. Poor decisions by the Yunus government have left the country in a precarious position.So the key question now is – Is Bangladesh imploding?
LOSING SUPPORT
The Army and students’ group which were backing Yunus have now openly started raising doubts over his leadership and his intention to announce the elections. The Army chief is keeping the interim government in constant check by putting pressure on it to announce the elections, which is not going down well with many advisers in the Yunus government.
Nahid Islam, the face of the protest against Hasina and also part of the government, has stepped down and is likely to become the convener of a new political front. The National Citizen Party (NCP) will be headed by Islam. A political front by a disciple is a second setback for Yunus.
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The other major political force, the BNP has also given statements against Yunus. BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul said the public would not tolerate an interim government staying in power for a long time. BNP Chief Khaleda Zia also demanded early elections with minimal reforms to repair the state. Khaleda Zia addressed BNP cadres virtually from London.
THE 3 MISTAKES
Here’s why Yunus is losing support:1. ELECTIONS: Since the beginning, Yunus had promised early elections, but so far, he has not been able to give an exact date or month for it, which has raised eyebrows. The Army and political parties are concerned about this. The Army and BNP want elections to be conducted at the earliest with minimal reforms.
2. MONEY MATTERS: Bangladesh is failing as a country. It is in dire condition with regards to foreign investment and donations. After USAID, Switzerland also stopped its donations to Bangladesh, which has come as a huge blow. In the first three months, the foreign investment has come down to almost one-fourth compared to the same period of the previous year. It has decreased by 71%. The country has also witnessed a 13.08% decline in foreign asset inflows, an actual drop of $532.38 million (Economic Relations Department). Trading on the country’s main stock market, the Dhaka Stock Exchange, has dropped back to the 3 billion Taka mark.
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According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), food inflation was 10.72% in January this year, and non-food inflation was 9.32%. The Bangladesh Bank is following a contractionary monetary policy, which is reducing excess money supply.
The government has stopped printing new money, which is believed to be helpful in controlling inflation. This has resulted in shortage of cash in the market. The general living system is being disrupted in real terms due to lack of work and economic contraction. Inflation is still above 9%.
This is largely due to lack of investors’ trust in Yunus’s policies, as he is an unelected, unpopular leader leading a country.
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3. FLIP-FLOPS: Yunus’s flip-flops on foreign policy, by taking on countries like India and creating an atmosphere of fear in the minds of investors and by increasing closeness with a rogue nation like Pakistan, has landed him in further trouble.
Meanwhile, investors and foreign nations still remain confused about who is actually calling the shots in Bangladesh.
