It appears that the practice of ”Non-party Caretaker Government,” came about as a result of the failure of the ruling party to bring about free and fair elections. There was mutual distrust between the ruling party and the dominant opposition party. Hence, the idea of a caretaker government was introduced in the political life of Bangladesh. Off hand, it must be said that this practice is alien to most if not all the established democracies.

The question is how to bring about free and fair election. The Caretaker Government (CTG) as an answer, begs the question. Two issues have to be settled. First, how can elections be made free and fair? And second, who is responsible in bringing about free and fair elections. The two issues can be satisfactorily answered without a CTG.

Let us discuss the first issue. Elections are not merely a technical process. It is part of the political process that requires confidence not only of the competing parties as is happening in Bangladesh but more importantly, the voting public. To gain the confidence of the public, the election law must be sound; contains the necessary safeguards; provides a level playing field for all the competing parties; and must respect and uphold basic human rights particularly the right to peaceful assembly and free speech.

Building public confidence in the electoral process requires transparency. And transparency can best be achieved when all the political contestants are involved in the electoral process from the drafting of the election law, through the selection of the electoral administrators, all the way to the tabulation of election results till the resolution of electoral disputes. Confidence is further enhanced with the presence of nonpartisan observers as well as the news media witnessing the entire electoral process.

As to the second issue, one must not lose sight of the important and indispensable role the Electoral Body plays in making elections free and fair. This can only happen when the Electoral Body is independent, neutral and impartial. Here, the Election Law if not the Constitution, must establish the Electoral Body as impartial and independent so it can act impartially and independently.

What must be done to ensure the impartiality and independence of the Electoral body? There are basic elements that must be present.

1. The Electoral Body must have the necessary funds to perform its job. It must prepare its own budget, justifies it and the parliament or (Congress) appropriates the amount. Inadequate funding can undermine the neutrality and independence of the body.

2. There must be transparency in the selection and appointment of the administrators (Election Commissioners in most cases) of the Electoral Body. As much as possible, the selection and appointment of Election Officers must be free from partisan considerations. If partisan considerations cannot be avoided, then balance must be observed, i.e. all the political contestants participate in the selection process. The Selection Committee of Thailand is one mechanism by which the selection process can be insulated from partisan politics (though this has been subverted in the past, the process remains ideal). In the Philippines, the practice of Congressional Confirmation of the appointees by the Commission on Appointments provides check and balance on the appointing power.

3. Further, the officers of the Electoral Body must enjoy security of tenure in office. This is to protect the Electoral Officers from arbitrary removal from office, which can undermine their independence. The law must define the grounds and the manner by which they can be removed from office, which normally is impeachment. This is to maintain the independence of the Electoral Officers.

4. The law must define the role of the Electoral Body with reference to the lower level election administrators down to the polling center. It has to have supervision and control over them so they too can maintain their impartiality and independence.

5. The role of domestic and foreign observers cannot be undermined. Experience has shown that their presence and participation does not only deter fraud but it enhances the public’s confidence in the election.

Elections are the foundation of democracy and the role the Electoral Body plays in making elections work is so vital that it is often enshrined in the Constitution of a given nation. Hence, to strengthen democracy we have to strengthen democratic institutions such as the Electoral Body (normally an Election Commission). A Caretaker Government does not support and protect democratic institutions – it is a defeatist approach that avoids the problem instead of facing it head on.