Hasina says Khaleda can’t save war criminals with her ‘conspiracies’
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Saturday urged opposition leader Khaleda Zia to come to the path of healthy politics and accept her dialogue offer, shunning destructive politics.
“We’ve proposed for a dialogue, accept it,” she requested the opposition leader while making her opening speech at a views-exchange meeting with the grassroots leaders from Barguna district at her official residence Ganobhaban.
The Prime Minister also urged Khaleda Zia to stop the killing of innocent people in the name of agitations. “Please come to the path of healthy politics,” she said.
Expressing her regret as the opposition party did not accept her call to postpone their today’s rally due to the rescue operation at the site of Savar building collapse, Hasina said: “They’ll hold the rally and spend money, but she could have donated it for the Savar victims.”
Hasina foresaw that the opposition leaders from the rally will only hurl harsh words at the government and then damage vehicles.
She alleged that the motto of the opposition is to foil the trial of the war criminals through killing people, torching and vandalising vehicles and removing fishplates of rail tracks across the country. “We’ll build the country based on the Liberation War spirit. There’ll be no place for Razakars in this country.”
Accusing the opposition leader of engaging in ‘destructive’ politics just to save the war criminals, the Prime Minister called upon Khaleda Zia to have faith in people and said she cannot save the war criminals, no matter whatever conspiracies she (Khaleda) hatches.
“Whatever conspiracies you hatch you cannot protect the 1971 culprits who had unleashed atrocities during the Liberation War. Their trial must be held on Bangladesh soil,” she asserted.
She asked her party leaders and activists to remain vigil and mobilise public opinion so that the opposition cannot unleash the violent acts to protect the war criminals. “You’ll have to unite people and resist the destructive politics of the opposition in the name of hartal to save war criminals.”
Referring to the Savar tragedy, the Prime Minister said her government has taken all necessary measures to provide the families of the victims with jobs and financial assistance.
In this regard she mentioned that jobs for 1,000 injured people have already been ensured while initiatives have been taken to create employment opportunities for more workers who lost their jobs following the Savar building collapse.
About her government’s steps to strengthen democracy, the Awami League President said the voting rights of people have been ensured in the country to establish a healthy democratic process and accountability.
She mentioned that undemocratic forces capturing state power in 1975 had introduced the politics of killing and vote rigging and thus destroyed the country’s democratic institutions.
Sheikh Hasina said she and her party always believe in democracy, development and empowerment of people.
Mentioning that over 5,500 elections were held since the present government has assumed office, the Prime Minister said no one could raise any question about the neutrality and impartiality of those polls.
Hasina said that the BNP-Jamat alliance government had prepared a voter list incorporating over 1.23 crore dubious voters to win the election which people resisted.
Charging the BNP-led previous government with turning the country a safe haven for terrorists and militants, Sheikh Hasina said the present government contained all forms of militancy and terrorism with an iron hand and established peace in the country.
The premier described various development programmes like education, health, communications and ICT implemented by her government for the welfare of people.
In this regard, she mentioned that the present government distributed textbooks free of costs up to secondary level students, ensured reaching of health care and ICT services to the doorsteps of rural people and constructed flyovers, big bridges, culverts and new roads and highways.
About ensuring food security and social safety net, she said about 5 crore people have elevated to middle income group from low income level due to the successful measures taken by her government in the last four years.
The Awami League President called upon all to work together so that Bangladesh can be a dignified, prosperous and developed country in the world by the year 2021 when the nation will celebrate the Golden Jubilee of its independence.
AL Presidium Members Begum Matia Chowdhury, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Abdul Latif Siddiqui and Kazi Jafarullah, Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif and AL Organizing Secretaries BM Mozammel and Ahmed Hossain, Information and Research Secretary Advocate Afzal Hossain, Office Secretary Abdul Mannan Khan and former chief whip of the Jatiya Sangsad Abul Hasnat Abdullah were, among others, present.
AL organising secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim conducted the views-exchange meeting which was convened as part of a series of such meetings with the grassroots-level leaders and workers initiated by the ruling Awami League at the end 2011.
The office-bearers of Barguna district unit AL, national committee members, party MPs, administrator of Barguna District Council, presidents and general secretaries of upazila, thana, union and municipal units and upazila chairmen and vice-chairmen of the party, mayors and councillors of municipalities, chairmen of the union councils and presidents and general secretaries of the associate and like-minded bodies of the Awami League district unit were also present at the meeting.
Source: UNBConnect
