She says she is under house arrest
Opposition leader Khaleda Zia on Friday urged the country’s people to fully boycott the January-5 election terming it a farce in the name of polls.
“I call upon the country’s people for completely boycotting the stained and farcical acts on January 5 in the name of election. No one at home and abroad will endorse this farcical election and the Awami League government will emerge in its illegal cover with this election,” she said in a statement.
Khaleda, also the chairperson of the main opposition BNP, alleged that the government is going to introduce a dirty chapter of annihilating democracy on January 5 by dreadfully misusing the law enforcement agencies with the help of its puppet Election Commission. “So, January 5 will be treated as a terrible, stigmatic black date.”
Earlier, the 18-paerty alliance, led by her party, called a 48-hour nationwide shutdown from 6am on Saturday alongside its ongoing non-stop blockade programme demanding that the January-5 election be stopped.
In the statement, the former premier said the government is going to stage a shameless mockery in the name of parliamentary elections to less than half of the constituencies to siege the state power snatching people’s constitutional, democratic, basic and voting rights by resorting to its evil-design and terrorism.
Khaleda alleged that the ruling party had to go for selection by distributing and sharing more than half of the constituencies with its partners as it did not dare to take the risk of holding elections in those seats.
Referring to media reports, the BNP chief said a ruling party MP has already directed the party’s leaders and activists to keep a small number of people standing in voters’ queues for manipulating the presence of voters by casting false votes.
She said most people of the country has not minimum enthusiasm about the farcical elections as no democratic party, including BNP-led- 18-party alliance, did not join it. “Rather, a strong anger has created among them as they have been deprived of voting rights. They’ are venting hatred towards them.”
Mentioning that she has been kept under house arrest, Khaleda urged her leaders and activists to carry out the democratic movement. “In the movement in which many people have shed their blood will surely be successful. The humiliating defeat of brag of power is imminent.”
“The government being scared by the announcement of the peaceful programme ‘March for Democracy’ has kept my residence besieged by the law enforcers and members of intelligence. I’m not allowed to come out of it. In fact, the government has kept me under house arrest without any announcement.”
The opposition leader blamed the government’s stubbornness for not being able to hold a free, fair and competitive election through compromise despite their repeated calls.
Expressing her gratitude to the country’s people for giving her huge support and repeated chances to serve them, Khaleda said, “Power is not a big deal to me… I’m at this stage of my life ready to make any type of sacrifice for establishing people’s right and their emancipation, not to go to power.”
Source: UNB Connect