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Hasina demands explanation from PM on govt’s failure
10/16/2005
Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina has asked Prime Minister Khaleda Zia to account to the countrymen for her government's ''failure'' to run the country and ensure public security.
"Can we call Bangladesh an independent and sovereign country in the present perspective? The nation's security is now under such threat that 500 bombs exploded across the country at the same time on the same day. The Prime Minister will have to answer to the people why her government has failed to eliminate terrorism and protect the people from terror attacks," said Hasina, who lost power at the last polls.
The ex-PM was speaking Saturday at her Dhanmondi office to an audience of leaders and activists of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jatiya Party from Chanpainawabganj district when they called on her and joined the Awami League, reports UNB.
Citing official statements that ''some criminals came from neighboring country India'' for the August 17 serial bombings, Hasina questioned where the government intelligence agencies like NSI, SB and CID were when foreign criminals entered into Bangladesh and blasted hundreds of bombs.
"Were the intelligence agencies sleeping during the bomb attacks? Some foreign criminals came, exploded bombs and returned home… Is it believable? No one believes such falsehoods," she said.
In fact, she said, this government has no headache for the people who are passing days amid immense sufferings due to skyrocketing prices of essentials, "communal terrorism", and "limitless corruption".
"The BNP-Jamaat alliance government has turned a prosperous country into a ruined one. We left a surplus of 2.6 million (26 lakh) tonnes of rice at the end of our tenure while we found a deficit of 4 million tonnes of rice at the start. And now people are dying from scarcity of food," she told the function.
Hasina alleged that the government was indifferent to providing adequate aid for the 'Monga' (near famine situation) victims in the country's northern districts.
"Khaleda Zia and her family members are only busy fattening their bank balances. They are spending thousands of taka to take one meal while many people have to spend their total income of the day to get a single meal," she lamented.
The AL chief was also critical of the Prime Minister for her claim in the October 10 speech on people's per- capita income.
Hasina alleged that the government-sponsored criminals were attacking the minority people and anti-government leaders and activists.
Welcoming the newcomers she urged the countrymen to wage a tough united movement and topple the present "undemocratic government" to establish a country of plenty and peace.
Among others, AL General Secretary Abdul Jalil, presidium members Matia Chowdhury, Babu Suranjit Sengupta, Tofail Ahmed and Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Abdul Wadud, Vice-president of Chanpainawabganj Sadar thana BNP, and Mohsin Ali, president of Sadar thana Jatiya Party, were present on the occasion.
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