Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Friday criticised opposition Leader Khaleda Zia for her promise to introduce a new form of government if voted to power, saying the BNP chief would rather destroy the country in her new way.
“If the opposition leader gets a chance to assume power, she will open a new bhaban [building] like the previous Hawa Bhaban and will engage in corruption, terrorism and militancy to foil the country’s independence and sovereignty,” Hasina said while addressing a rally organised by her party’s Khilgaon and Sabujbagh units.
She had earlier inaugurated the 500-bed Mugda General Hospital at Khilgaon. The Public Works Department constructed the 13-storey hospital on 3.85 hectares of land at a cost of Tk1.1bn. After the inauguration Hasina vowed to set up a nursing institute there.
Addressing the rally later, the AL president urged people to vote for her party in the upcoming parliamentary polls. “The Awami League government has been working to implement all of its election pledges. Some promises have already been fulfilled, work of some is continuing while the rest will be implemented in future,” she said, adding that if her party was voted to power, all unfinished promises would be met.
Hasina called upon all to remain united against those who wanted to play with the fate of the people of the country.
“People will have to be alert so that any corrupt, patrons of militancy and terrorists could not get the chance to run the country. We all have to protect the country from the looters,” she said.
The PM was also critical of the then BNP-Jamaat coalition government for halting all development activities initiated by the previous Awami League government. “As a result people suffered from gas, water and power crises. But the present government has taken effective measures to solve these problems,” she said.
Hasina urged people to be conscious about using gas, water and electricity.
Referring to the war crimes trial, the PM said: “The nation has started getting verdicts one after another. The country is coming out of its stigma through these verdicts,” she said and sought people’s support to implement the verdicts against the war criminals.
Hasina blamed the opposition leader for taking side with the war criminals and trying to protect them.
She was also critical of her political opponent, Khaleda Zia, for her write-up in the Washington Times appealing to the US government for scrapping the GSP facility to Bangladesh.
Local ruling party lawmaker Saber Hossain Chowdhury presided over the rally also addressed by party leaders Mahabub-Ul-Alam Hanif, AFM Bahauddin Nasim and Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya. Health Minister AFM Ruhal Haque, State Minister for Law Quamrul Islam were also present at the programme.