A PRIME MINISTER DOES NOT TALK LIKE THAT

by F R Chowdhury

Recently in a cabinet meeting the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said that Dr. Yunus was waiting for Mrs. Hilary Clinton to become US President so that he could again start with his conspiracies against Bangladesh. It was very disgusting. Cabinet meeting is the one where the council of ministers sit under the chairmanship of the President (if presidential system) or Prime Minister (in case of parliamentary system) to discuss important matters and take vital decisions that shape the policy of the government. It is not a place for stupid rubbish talks. This is a meeting where Cabinet Secretary is the only civil servant to attend. Rest of the attendees are the ministers who are regarded as the government (so far their respective ministries are concerned). As a civil servant I happened to attend one cabinet meeting only because I had to present the details of an important paper before the cabinet on behalf of my minister. The minister introduced the subject and then with the consent of the president asked me to go ahead with the details. I have seen the solemn atmosphere in such cabinet meeting where you think ten times before you utter a word. I was indeed shocked to hear what the prime minister said in the cabinet meeting. It does not reflect the maturity and sense of proportion that a prime minister should have.

We are aware that Sheikh Hasina thinks that all praise belonged to her late father Banga -bandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and now all that belongs to her. She cannot tolerate any praise or appreciation of any other person. It is no fault of Dr. Yunus that he has been awarded Nobel Peace Prize but since that day he became enemy number one of the prime minister. She thinks that for her great work in restoring democracy (arguably destroying democracy) in Bangladesh and peace agreement with tribal people (which has never been materialised), it is she who should have been given Nobel Prize. It is the ignorance of the Nobel Peace Committee that they wrongly selected and gave it to Dr. Yunus. In the presence of Nobel Laurent Dr. Yunus in the country she repeatedly invited one from India for every little function until Dr. Amartya Sen realised the whole thing (apparent humiliation of Dr. Yunus) and refused to come for any further functions in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina employed all different agencies under her control to find some irregularity with Grameen Bank but failed. She even engaged some Norwegian journalist to write something against Dr. Yunus but could not substantiate any of the allegations. Having failed everything else, she spread the rumour that Dr. Yunus exerted his influence for the World Bank to pull out of the Padma Bridge project. As a matter of fact World Bank had alerted Bangladesh about corruption and bungling at the very start. Eventually they had to pull back because Bangladesh refuted their claim. It was a sad chapter in our history because never before a donor agency withdrew their participation on the ground of corruption.

Another Bangladeshi Fazle Hassan Abed who owns and operates perhaps the largest NGO in the world has been honoured by the British government. He is now Sir Fazle Hassan Abed. The nation as a whole is proud of his achievement yet, we never heard a word of praise or appreciation from the prime minister. It merely reflects her vindictive mind.

Very recently Mr. Shaikh Shiraz has been given a prestigious award in the Philippines but no response or reaction from the government. I will not be surprised to hear some false allegations against him as well. It is simply not possible for any Bangladeshi to be honoured without honouring the prime minister first.

Recently the Chicago city Council decided to name a small street in honour of our late President Ziaur Rahman. They informed our mission in USA thinking how much we would appreciate their gesture. Instead the mission (advised by Dhaka) protested the decision and informed the Council that the government would not appreciate such naming of a street. They got the bigger shock when Bangladesh went to court to cancel the council’s decision. However, the road has been finally named after our ex-president. The nation is proud of it except one person and one family. Vindictiveness can never bring happiness; it can only bring sorrow.

In Bangladesh patriotism only belongs to the government and their followers. Others are engaged in conspiracy to undo the independence of Bangladesh. Criticism of the government is termed as anti-state activity. Quite frequently I come across the news that in Bangladesh someone has been sent to jail for criticizing or making mockery of the prime minister. Here in the UK, we criticize the government without being called anti-state elements. Newspapers often bring out cartoons showing the prime minister or other ministers not being able to do what they should do. No newspaper is banned or editor jailed. We live in a free and democratic state where human rights are deeply respected.

We will not have achieved our independence so long we cannot freely speak our mind. I may criticize the prime minister or the government but I do so because I am very patriotic. I do so because I love my country. I want my country to be free of everything that can be criticized. It is almost an impossible task and the process of criticism continues and that is democracy. We have to be tolerant. We have to respect others’ views. Please stop creating division by branding people unnecessarily as against the independence of Bangladesh. We are all patriotic citizens of the country. We love our country. The enemies of the country are those who are trying to kill democracy and make it a one party state.

London, 15-December-2015                                       <[email protected]>