Commentary: After historic election, will Bangladesh get real change or status quo with a new name?

Serious allegations of corruption have been levelled against Mr Rahman and other senior BNP figures in the past. The party has also been criticised for attempting to entrench itself by politicising the bureaucracy during its previous stints in power. 

Yet, throughout the electoral campaign, Mr Rahman has tried to present a new face of the BNP and projected the party as a force for change. Furthermore, in selecting his Cabinet, Mr Rahman is trying to bring in new faces untainted by corruption allegations. 

That said, it is a political reality that he needs to retain the support of old BNP hands who are able to mobilise support. This balancing act is clearly seen in Mr Rahman’s appointment of members to a separate advisory council. 

PRESSURE FROM OPPOSITION BENCH AND THE STREETS

The BNP’s failure to institute constitutional changes and address corruption will be met with loud opposition within parliament, despite the BNP’s sweeping majority. 

With 68 seats, the Islamist political party, Jamaat-e-Islami, is the second-largest party in parliament. More importantly, it won almost 32 per cent of the vote share, substantially more than its previous high of 12.2 per cent in 1991. This increase in vote share was due largely to its focus on an anti-corruption agenda and strong support for constitutional reforms, rather than its religious agenda. 

Thus, the Jamaat can be expected to take a strong stance on these issues in parliament. The party refused to attend Mr Rahman’s oath-taking ceremony because of suspicions that the BNP is not committed to ushering in constitutional reforms, which signals the activist oppositional role the party will play. Its sizable vote share will enable the Jamaat to assert greater political influence in and outside of parliament than the number of seats it won.