[Video transcript]
In the capital Dhaka, the streets are filled with posters of the ruling party and their allies, as parliamentary elections approach in Bangladesh.
The main opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), is boycotting the elections, and demanding Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's resignation. Senior BNP leaders, including Moin Khan, are urging voters to abstain from voting.
(Moin Khan, Senior BNP Leader)
"We don’t want to legitimize this illegal, farcical, and comical election of Awami League. That is the whole point. Obviously, we always want to take part in genuine free, fair, and participatory elections - and we made that clear again and again."
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is seeking a fourth consecutive term. Her party Awami League has been running the government since 2009. Her former advisor Moshiur Rahman, rejects the BNP's criticism and blames the party's leadership for their absence from power.
(Moshiur Rahman, Former Advisor to Sheikh Hasina)
"When was the last time BNP won an election? If a party does not take part in three consecutive voting, people tend to forget that. They do not have a credible leadership now. They do not have a credible policy."
With BNP out of the race, the few remaining parties pose no threat to the Awami League.
(Zobaer Ahmed, DW Correspondent, Dhaka)
"The stage is set for Bangladesh’s parliamentary elections. But with the main opposition absent, the challenge now for Bangladesh’s election commission and Shiekh Hasina’s Awami League party is to inspire resounding voter turnout on Election Day. Although the opposition has already rejected this election, for the ruling party, the legitimacy and acceptance of this electoral process essentially depend on how many people show up at the polling stations on January 7th."
But many voters, like Dewan Jubayer Islam, feel without any opposition, it's no longer a democratic election but a selection.
(Dewan Jubayer Islam, voter)
"The participation of the opposition is a must. Otherwise, it is not a democratic election. If the opposition does not take part in the election, then there is no need for voting."
Former Election Commissioner Shakhawat Hossain echoes the sentiment, emphasizing the need for a true contest for meaningful participation.
(Shakhawat Hossain, former election commissioner)
"Everybody is trying to say if the people participate or the voters participate, it is a participatory election. No, it is not. Unless there is a contest, unless there is a contest between parties, unless it is participatory in that sense and you have multiparty participation, then the voter turnout will always be low, however you try."
As the Awami League ramps up its voter mobilization campaign, uncertainty lingers about just how many of Bangladesh's 119 million voters they can convince to go to the polls.