The government statistics on national growth are false, commented Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
The secretary general of Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) was speaking at a seminar on Friday morning, highlighting the country’s economic situation.
He said, “Today India admits that its growth had dropped by 10 per cent. But here the government lies that growth has gone up by 8 to 10 per cent. Just imagine how irresponsible a government can be to lie to the people.”
“Why? Because they have no link with the people. This government is completely isolated from the people and so have no responsibility to towards the people.”
Mirza Fakhrul said, “The government lies at every step. From the very beginning we said their ‘stimulus’ was a farce. They said they were providing stimulus. They are giving it from the banks, that is, 87 per cent from the banks. Those will receive it as the banks please. So what happens? Those who have no links with the government, have no transactions with the banks, they will not receive any stimulus. So our informal sector is wiped out, they have lost their capital. It is even worse for the rural economy. The same is happening in the urban economy. The government is covering this up, lying.”
Economy dependent on others
Mirza Fakhrul said, “Today this government, consciously, is destroying the foundations of the country’s economy established by Ziaur Rahman and Begum Khaleda Zia, to destroy the country’s economy and make it dependent on others.”
“It is unfortunate,” he said, “that we cannot bring forward the main political issue for which we fought, that is, democracy. Democracy was the main spirit of our independence struggle. We struggled long for this and are still struggling. We earned this in 1990. But this Awami League joined hands with the anti-democracy force and has destroyed democracy.”
‘BNP is very much here’
Responding to a remark of Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader, Mirza Fakhrul, “I find it interesting how they say BNP is no more, BNP has been completely destroyed. Yet the general secretary the entire day long has nothing else to do but speak against BNP.”
“He goes on and on saying, BNP is no more. He doesn’t bother about the country’s economy or how to take the party ahead. He just has two things to talk about, Sheikh Hasina and BNP. That means BNP is so much here that he has to talk about it every day.”
Mirza Fakhrul said, “It is still corruption, corruption and corruption. There is nothing but corruption all around. They talk about the health sector, but that too is false. The government narrative has nothing to do with reality. I see that there are Covid-affected people all around. My brother, my uncle, my aunt, everyone has Covid.”
“All 19 members of Dhaka North city corporation’s mayor have been affected by coronavirus and were in hospital. Even so they say that only 1000 or 1900 are infected. In most districts tests even aren’t carried out. It is like Trump’s ‘no test, no corona.’
He said, “Public administration has 18.19 per cent of the GDP, and agriculture 1 per cent or something. Why should the public administration have so much money? Because if they are to be kept in a one-party system, if the public is to be steamrolled, the public administration has to be appeased with one incentive after the other.”
Before the 2018 election, people of a particular force were given costly vehicles so they would stay in the field and act accordingly. Now even a deputy secretary gets a car. He can buy it easily and receive Tk 50,000 monthly to maintain the car. But what about our farmer brothers? They cannot get food to eat. They have created this disparity, this predicament of the economy.”
“Awami League ushered in 1/11”
The BNP secretary general said, “They talk about 1/11, but they are the one that ushered it in. They claim it to be the result of their movement and have legitimised it.”
“How do you all talk about democracy today, about people’s rights? Those who simply use people as a tool to stay in power, who lie to the people, cheat them, they are talking about democracy.”
“Awami League has no right to talk about democracy,” he said, “They are lost and bankrupt and so now resort to firearms to forcefully stay in power.”
Fakhrul said, “This situation will end. It is bound to end. The people of Bangladesh have never silently accepted the loss of their rights. It may have taken time, but that time has ended.”
He called on the people not to give up hope. “The sun will rise, the sun of democracy, the sun of the people. I do not call upon you to come forward for BNP, but for yourselves, for independence, for your rights, you future generation.”
