Local government adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain has taken to Facebook to accuse individuals holding multiple passports and foreign citizenships of compiling “safe exit” lists for others, amid fallout from remarks by National Citizen Party (NCP) convenor Nahid Islam.
In a post on his Facebook account on Wednesday night, he said those who have obtained citizenships of other countries are the ones preparing lists to help opponents flee.
He wrote, “Those who took passports or citizenships of several countries are the same people drawing up lists for others’ safe exits.
“The sympathisers of those who fled on 5 August are dying of pain. Time and again, fascists must be the ones to run. We were born in this country and, God willing, we will die on its soil. While fighting fascists and killers, I pray for martyrdom like my brothers.”
The post comes after a television interview with Nahid that has stirred debate. In that interview he reportedly criticised some advisers and implied they were seeking “safe exits.”
Earlier on Wednesday, adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan, who serves the ministries of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Water Resources, rejected the suggestion that advisers are hunting for exits. “Nahid Islam’s statement should prove that advisers are seeking a safe exit.
“I am not looking for any exit. I remained in the country and will spend the rest of my life here.” She added that the government maintains good relations with newly formed political parties just as it does with others.
She said the reasons- if any- behind his remarks were matters for his party, and the government cannot comment on informal utterances by opposition figures.
In the television appearance, Nahid allegedly said many political leaders and some advisers had betrayed public trust after joining the government, and hinted that names would be revealed when the time came.
“We should have strengthened student leadership and entered government together. The trust we placed in civil society and political groups was misplaced.
“Many advisers have secured their own futures or betrayed the mass uprising. When the time comes, we will disclose their names,” he told the channel.
The exchange has intensified debate over loyalty and accountability among political figures and government advisers, and is likely to keep the controversy in the headlines.
