Last update on: Tue Mar 11, 2025 05:56 AM
Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus said that when he took charge, the country was “completely devastated,” like “another Gaza”, where not buildings, but entire institutions, policies, and international relations were destroyed.
“The damage she [deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina] had done was monumental,” Yunus said in an interview with The Guardian published yesterday.
Hasina has been in India after the ouster of her government amid a student-led mass uprising on August 5 last year.
Yunus’ government has initiated prosecutions against senior police officers accused of extrajudicial killings, shut down secret detention centres, and established human rights commissions. Hasina is facing hundreds of charges.
Despite his various reform initiatives, Yunus is facing mounting pressure from political groups, particularly the BNP, to hold elections swiftly, reports The Guardian.
Yunus denied any suggestion that the streets were less safe than under Hasina’s rule, but others have warned that the country’s security situation threatened to spiral beyond his government’s control, reported the UK-based newspaper.
The chief adviser maintained that he had a “very good relationship” with the military, and that there was “no pressure” from the army chief.
“Hasina’s regime wasn’t a government — it was a family of bandits,” he said.
“Any order from the boss, and it was done. Someone’s causing problems? We’ll make them disappear. Want to hold an election? We will make sure you win all the seats. You want money? Here’s a million dollar loan from the bank and you never have to pay back.
“Banks were given full licence to steal people’s money, with active participation from the government,” Yunus said.
“They would send their officials with guns to get it all signed off.”
In December, a formal extradition request was made to India to send Hasina back to face trial in Bangladesh, but the chief adviser confirmed there had been “no response” from the Indian government.
“Hasina would still face trial for crimes against humanity, even if in absentia,” he added.
Yunus said that while India sheltering Hasina was tolerable, “allowing her to use India as a platform to undo everything we have done is dangerous. It destabilises the country.”
The return of Donald Trump to the White House has also complicated matters. The Biden administration was a key supporter of Yunus, but Trump has slashed USAID funding. In efforts to bring the US on side, Yunus has invited billionaire Elon Musk to bring his Starlink satellite internet service to Bangladesh, reports The Guardian.
Yunus expressed hope that Trump might see Bangladesh as a “good investment opportunity” and trading partner, and said he intended to pitch this to Musk during his visit.
“Trump’s a dealmaker, so I say to him: come, do deals with us,” he said.
If he did not, Bangladesh would feel a little pain, Yunus said.
“But this democratic process will not stop.”
