Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said he is not qualified to hold the office of president, with the incumbent head of state Md Abdul Hamid's second consecutive term nearing an end.
“The prime minister is discussing this matter with [the stakeholders]. She is making inquiries. You will get to know [who the next president will be] when the time comes,” Quader, also general secretary of the ruling Awami League, said in response to questions from journalists at the Secretariat on Thursday.
The Awami League would remain cautious about the BNP's protests and stay on the streets to protect people's lives and properties, Quader said.
“We will be cautious about the BNP's movement so that it cannot cause anarchy, and we will not change our stance. We are on the streets and will not leave as we will perform our duty to protect the lives and properties of people,” UNB quoted him as saying.
Replying to a question about the BNP's leadership, Quader said: “The Awami League will join the next election under the leadership of Sheikh Hasina, but who is the BNP's leader?”
Referring to Wednesday's sit-in of the BNP, the Awami League leader said there had been no violence centring around the program, but BNP activists had hurled brickbats at policemen in Faridpur, adding that it had not turned violent.
If the BNP held rallies, the Awami League would hold peace processions, he said.
Replying to a question about the possibility of banning the Jamaat-e-Islami, the politician said it was up to the court.
“Without Jamaat, the BNP is powerless as the BNP and Jamaat are two sides of the same coin. It is difficult for the BNP to move forward without Jamaat, and if it wants more people at its programs, it has to depend on Jamaat,” he said.
The government will have to choose a new face as the 22nd president of Bangladesh as Md Abdul Hamid will not be eligible for re-election when his second term ends on April 23.
Highly placed sources in the ruling Awami League recently told Dhaka Tribune that party chief and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina would choose a suitable candidate for the office of the head of state to replace Md Abdul Hamid, but she had not shared any names yet.