Awami League president and prime minister Sheikh Hasina said that conspiracies being hatched at home and abroad over the 12th parliamentary election slated for January 7.
‘Make sure that a festive atmosphere exists and the election becomes competitive and participatory as conspiracies are being hatched nationally and internationally about the polls,’ she said.
The prime minister was virtually addressing six election rallies of the AL in Jamalpur, Sherpur, Kishoreganj, Narsingdi, Chandpur and Bandarban together this afternoon from the party’s Tejgaon office in Dhaka.
She asked her party activists to go door to door with their election manifesto to convince the people to vote for ‘boat’ as only her party could continue the country’s journey towards advancement and prosperity.
‘We have announced our election manifesto yesterday [Wednesday]. Read the manifesto and go to the people with the manifesto and seek vote for the boat,’ she said.
She said that the AL government had been able to transform Bangladesh into a developing country and the nation’s journey as a developing nation would finally start in 2026.
The prime minister said that they would turn Bangladesh into developed, prosperous and Smart Sonar Bangla by 2041 as envisioned by Bangladesh’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by maintaining the developing country status.
‘Only Awami League can sustain the advancement of the country towards the development,’ she said.
Reminding the people that the country’s progress has been made as her party is in power since 2009 because the people voted for her party’s electoral symbol ‘boat’, she said, ‘Vote for the boat again to give the chance of serving the people.’
The AL chief said that Bangladesh was progressing ahead and would progress further if her party was voted to power again.
‘People from all strata will get an improved and better life if the Awami League remains in power. InshaAllah, the Awami League will get the people’s mandate to serve them again,’ she added.
The AL president said that the election would be participatory with participation of the voters and the masses though the terror organisation BNP and the party of war criminals Jamaat were not participating.
The terrorist organisation BNP doesn’t believe in election rather it wants to destroy the electoral process since it had been defeated to the Awami League with a huge margin as her party got 233 seats and BNP led 20-party alliance bagged only 30 seats in 2008 general election, she said.
BNP has been trying to foil the next polls through violence and arson terrorism as they did the same thing prior to 2014 election, she said.
‘They (BNP and Jamaat) always try to thwart the election despite the fact that the fate of the people will not change without an elected government… BNP and Jamaat only know to burn people and destroy the electoral process,’ she said.
The BNP-Jamaat had not been able to take the country ahead a single step towards prosperity while they were in power rather pushed the country backwards, she said.
The AL chief asked her party men to maintain a peaceful environment so that every candidate can seek vote going to every doorstep.
She also instructed the AL leaders and workers particularly the candidates to keep in mind her party’s slogan ‘My vote, My choice.’
‘Maintain a peaceful environment. The candidates will seek vote for them from the people freely and respect the people’s mandate,’ she instructed her party men.
Military dictator Ziaur Rahman had introduced vote rigging through yes/no vote and presidential election alongside introducing the culture of disappearance and murder, she said, adding that his wife Khaleda Zia did the same thing following her husband.
The AL chief formally launched the party’s electioneering on December 20 with the visits to the shrines of saints Shahjalal and Shah Paran and holding a rally in Sylhet.
She is expected to go to Barishal today and address an election rally in the district town at 3:00pm that day.
Sheikh Hasina will then visit Gopalganj on December 30 and address a rally in Gopalganj-3 (Tungipara and Kotalipara) constituency. She will address the AL rally in Madaripur-3 the same day.
Awami League general secretary and road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader, MP, praesidium members Kazi Zafarullah, join general secretary and information and broadcasting minister Hasan Mahmud, MP,
Organising secretary BM Mozammel Haque, office secretary Biplab Barua were present at Tejgaon party office end while AL praesidium member Matia Chowdhury was present at Sherpur end.
Local AL leaders were present at the six district rallies which turned into human seas with participation of hundreds of thousands of people of all strata of life.
New Age
