Country must be run following Bangabandhu's directives, guidelines: PM

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Tuesday said the country will be undoubtedly run following the directives and guideline of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman that he had given through his ideological speech on the historic homecoming day. "Father of the Nation delivered his policy-making speech and issued directives on his homecoming day on January 10, 1972 to govern the country, and we have to go ahead with that ideology, directives and guidelines," she said. In this connection, she said that "We have to pull the country ahead, and the development spree of Bangladesh must not be allowed to disrupt at anyhow," she said.

The premier was addressing a discussion organized by Awami League (AL) marking the homecoming day of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at its central office in city's 23 Bangabandhu Avenue. She chaired the discussion joining virtually from her official residence Ganabhaban. Sheikh Hasina, also the President of Awami League, said those who turned the country into the kingdom of murders and war criminals as well as the land of corruption will not be allowed to stay on the soil of this country. "This (message) should be made clear to them," she sounded firmly.

Besides, she also reiterated boldly that they will not allow anyone to play ducks and drakes with rights of the people. The premier said Awami League is in the power for three consecutive times elected by the votes of the people. "If we were not elected by the votes of the people then we wouldn't have come to the power for three consecutive times and completed 13 years," she said, adding: "This is reality and it have to be accepted." She mentioned that when AL remains in the power the wheels of development continue keep rolling.

Presidium Members Begum Matia Chowdhury, MP, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman and AHM Khairuzzaman Liton, Joint Secretary and Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni, MP, Joint Secretary and Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud, MP, Joint Secretary AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Central Working Committee Member Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya Bir Bikram, Organizing Secretary Mirza Azam, MP, Dhaka South City President Abu Ahmed Mannafi and Dhaka North City President Sheikh Bazlur Rahman also spoke. AL Publicity and Publication Secretary Dr Abdus Sobhan Golap, MP, moderated the discussion from the Ganabhaban end.

On January 10, 1972, Bangabandhu returned the sacred soil of independent Bangladesh via London and New Delhi after 290 days of captivity in a Pakistan jail. Recalling the disturbance that had been created in the post-independent period during Bangabandhu's regime, Sheikh Hasina said the people who wrote columns criticizing the government of Father of the Nation or created unstable situation in the country in the name of movement or scientific socialism, actually what they had wanted to do. She added: "That is my question . . . still not gets the answer of that question," she said.

The premier also criticized the attitude of a section of people, saying indeed it’s the habit of that group to criticize all good works of Awami League. She noted: "Those who never wanted independence of the country, those who had run the country taking killers and war criminals with them and wanted to destroy development of Bangladesh, some of their cohorts are still in the society and in the political arena. They are making these unnecessary whims." About the allegation of wasting money in the name of development activities, she said if thousands of crores of Taka are spoiled in the name of development, then how Bangladesh became the role model of development before the world.

Highlighting various success stories of the country in the last 13 years, she said that many developed and rich countries are not giving Covid-19 vaccine free of cost. "We are providing the jabs fully free and so far over 13 crore people have been brought under the inoculation," she said. The head of government renewed her call all of the countrymen to receive vaccine to be remained protected from the lethal virus, saying "there is no scarcity of vaccine." Sheikh Hasina called for maintaining the pace of development that gained during the last 13 years under the Awami League government. "We have to materialize the dream of the Father of the Nation to turn the country into a hunger-poverty-free developed and prosperous Sonar Bangla," she said and urged all to take this vow.