BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has remarked that there is no reason to believe the National Consensus Commission will bring about fundamental reforms in the state by holding meetings with political parties. In his view, “a country cannot be run by hiring a few individuals from abroad.”
Mirza Fakhrul was the chief guest at a discussion meeting titled “July Revolution: Expectations and Achievements”, organised by Zia Parishad, held at the National Press Club auditorium in Dhaka on Saturday morning.
At the event, the BNP secretary general said, “Many think that a few individuals – the ones implementing reforms – will hold some meetings, carry out reforms, push the people forward, and everything will be fixed. Reforms don’t happen this way. Reforms must go through a process, and it is an ongoing process.”
Mirza Fakhrul stated, “You can’t expect that just because you want it, the police will stop taking bribes tomorrow. The structure must be designed in such a way that they don’t take bribes. Similarly, our bureaucracy is a major obstacle to our development. It is a negative bureaucracy. To turn this negative bureaucracy into a positive bureaucracy, we must take necessary steps. The primary task is engaging with the people.”
He emphasised that elections are necessary to establish people’s governance. On this note, he added, “Can a country be run by hiring a few individuals from abroad? No, it cannot. We must understand this simple truth.”
Regarding the Proportional Representation (PR) electoral system, the BNP secretary general said some political parties have started advocating for it, but it has no relevance to Bangladesh. “They are loudly advocating for the PR system, but the common people don’t even understand what proportional representation means. Ask them what proportional representation is; they won’t be able to explain.”
Mirza Fakhrul expressed frustration over media reports concerning the activities of BNP leaders and activists. He said, “Above all, honesty is needed. Without honesty, the BNP cannot stand before the people. Nowadays, a lot of the news that appears do not align with the BNP or Ziaur Rahman’s principles. So, those who work for the BNP and follow Ziaur Rahman must be honest.”
In his presidential speech, Zia Parishad Vice Chairman Shafiqul Islam said that Jamaat leaders are making anti-BNP statements across the country. However, instead of slandering others, people must be won over through tolerant behaviour.
Others who spoke at the event included Zia Parishad Vice Chairman Majibur Rahman Howlader, Secretary General Emtaz Hossain, Senior Joint Secretary General Abdullahil Masud, Joint Secretaries General Alimuzzaman, Monowar Islam, Shahidul Islam, Nazir Ahmed, Shahidul Haque, and Sharifuzzaman Khan, among others.