BNP Senior Joint Secretary General and Prime Minister’s Political Adviser Ruhul Kabir Rizvi has alleged that attempts are still being made in various ways to spread a vast web of conspiracy against the government, including propaganda and the creation of a “mob culture.”
He made the remarks on Monday while addressing a food distribution event for the destitute and helpless at the BNP central office in Nayapaltan, organised by the Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Rickshaw Van Auto Driver Dal.
Rizvi said that since the time of former president Ziaur Rahman, BNP has been a government of employment creation, not unemployment. He credited Ziaur Rahman as the main pioneer of foreign employment, with over a crore Bangladeshis now working abroad, including in the Middle East.
Under Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s leadership, he said, no one will remain unemployed in the country, and jobs will be arranged through various initiatives in different sectors. Even evicted hawkers will be rehabilitated, as the government has the responsibility to look after their children and families.
Referring to the Awami League’s 1972-1975 rule, Rizvi recounted an incident from the Rangpur-Kurigram region where a woman named Basanti had to wear a fishing net to cover herself due to a lack of saris, a photograph that appeared in international media. He alleged that during Sheikh Mujib’s three and a half years of misrule, an attempt was made to turn the entire nation into slaves.
He further alleged that Sheikh Hasina and her associates laundered Tk28 lakh crore over 16 years through various projects.
Rizvi warned that if old fascism rises again through any crack, no one will be safe, and democracy will be destroyed. “It is best to be careful while there is still time,” he said.
He also criticised Jamaat, saying their past agitation alongside Awami League to put BNP in a difficult position in the 1990s resulted in their own leaders being hanged.
On the Padma Barrage project, Rizvi asserted that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has not bowed to any hegemonic power.
Dhaka Metropolitan South City Corporation Administrator Abdus Salam, BNP’s Volunteer Affairs Secretary Mir Sarafat Ali Sapu, and Tanti Dal Convener Abul Kalam Azad also spoke. The event was presided over by the organisation’s Convener Arifur Rahman Tushar, after which food was distributed among the poor.
