Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday urged the people of the country to keep trust on her and expressed her desires to be one of them. The Prime Minister also vowed that she would not think twice to take any step for the welfare of the country. The PM came up with such statement while addressing the nation marking the first anniversary of her current government formed through the December 30, 2018 general election.
Sheikh Hasina formed the government for the third consecutive term following her party Awami League’s landslide victory in the 11th parliamentary election. The new cabinet was formed on January 7, 2019. “The people of Bangladesh are uniquely laborious and empowered with innovation. They can adapt to any situation. The general people are happy with a little thing. The Father of the Nation throughout his life had struggled to ensure the rights of these people and bring smile to their faces. As his daughter, the only aim of my life is to brighten the smile further on their faces. Keep trust in me. I want to live on as one of you”, said Sheikh Hasina.
Sheikh Hasina, also the chief of the ruling Awami League, in her about 30-minute speech called upon the corrupt people to correct themselves. “I work for the general people, for the sake of people’s welfare. I won’t hesitate to take any step.” The Prime Minister mentioned that the year 2020 specifically is important for our national life. The birth centenary of the Father of the Nation is being celebrated in this year and the golden jubilee of the Independence of our nation will also be celebrated in 2021 subsequently.
“These celebrations are not only the formalities in our national life, these are the sprits in the implementation of the dreams of Bangabandhu to transform Bangladesh as the ‘Sonar Bangla’”, said the Prime Minister. She said, “We are running the government since 2009 continuously and with a specific target, which is the economical freedom of the people, development of their livelihood and establish their fundamental rights.”
Sheikh Hasina said, the government after 1975 had turned the country into one with no honour and dignity. After the Awami League formed government with the public mandate in 2009 and in the last 10 years, Bangladesh has become a respectable country in the world for its socioeconomic development.
The Prime Minister mentioned that the economy of Bangladesh now rests on a strong foundation. Any kind of insignificant thing would not be able to obstruct the advancement of the country.
She also described various indicators in the development sector mentioned by many global organisations that speak for the pace of success of the nation.
State-owned Bangladesh Betar and Bangladesh Television simultaneously broadcast her address from 7:30pm. Private television channels and radio stations also aired the Prime Minister’s speech.
Mentioning that the government always welcomes peaceful democratic movement, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina however said it will not tolerate any destructive activity aimed at realising illogical demands. “Awami League is a democratic political party. We are respectful to the Constitution. We believe in the rule of law. We believe that people’s mandate is the only way to bring any change in power. We welcome any peaceful democratic movement. But, we won’t tolerate any destructive activity aimed at materialising illogical demands,” she said.
Talking about the arson-terrorism, Prime Minister said, in the past, the people of the country saw arson terrorism and killing of people in arson attacks by BNP-Jamaat in the name of movement. “The recurrence of those destructive activities would not be allowed on the soil of Bangladesh again,” she warned.
Talking about the anti-corruption drive, Sheikh Hasina said the ongoing drive against corrupt elements will continue. “I want to warn again-- the corrupt elements, however strong they may be, they would not be spared.” The Prime Minister called upon the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to bring those involved in making illegal wealth to book whoever that person is. “It has to be ensured that the rights of the common people cannot be snatched by anyone,” she said.
The Prime Minister also said the drive against militancy, terrorism and drugs will continue. “We want to establish a peaceful society, where there’ll be no envy and hatred. People from all religions and caste and creed will live in peace. All will perform their religious rituals with due dignity,” she said. Narrating the activities by the Parliament and the government, Hasina said the government has taken all sorts of initiatives to make Parliament effective while participation from the ruling and opposition parties makes it lively.
The Prime Minister said the government is always cautious about what it wants to do for the people of the country and what it has done for them. “You will also evaluate. But we do not believe in flimsy pledges. We make sure about our capability to implement.” Regarding the economic progress, the Prime Minister mentioned that there has been a huge difference made between what was 10 years ago in Bangladesh and what is the reality today. “The living standard of people has improved and purchasing capacity has increased. The people of this country had forgotten to dream of something positive. Now they can dream of living in a beautiful way. We’re working to help them translate their dream into reality,” she said.
The Prime Minister said the main aim of the government is to create employment opportunities for the youth and it has set a target to create 1.5 crore jobs. The process to establish 100 economic zones is going on. Meanwhile, the work for setting up of industries and mills in 15 economic zones has started.
“Huge local and foreign investors are coming to these economic zones for investment. Works are in progress to construct more than two dozens of hi-tech parks and IT villages across the country,” she said. About the foreign policy and Rohingya crisis, the Prime Minister said that Bangladesh follows the footprints of the Father of the Nation to maintain relations with other countries and that is ‘friendship to all and malice to none’.
“We give the highest priority to maintain good relations and cordiality with neighbours. We want to resolve the bilateral problems through dialogue. This is not our weakness, this is our tactics,” she said. For this, the PM said, Bangladesh did not step into the trap of Myanmar although there were various types of provocations. “We didn’t divert our attention from the path of resolving Rohingya problem through discussions.”
In the last one year, she said, the government has tried to give its best for the people of the country. “We would not claim that we have been 100 percent successful in all sectors. But, we can say with all firmness that we didn’t keep any stone unturned. We’ll move ahead taking lessons from the past mistakes and experiences,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina said there will be new challenges and those will be faced with cooperation from all. Hasina said all her works and activities are people-centric, and she has the full confidence in the people of the country.
