YouTube star Ashraful Hossain Alam, referred to as Hero Alom by his fans has said that the only reason his candidacy was rejected by the Election Commission is because he is not “good looking enough.”
“My fault is I am not good looking enough.. if I was handsome enough, I could have gone far,” he said during a press conference of Satantra Prarthi Oikya Porishad (Independent Candidates’ United Council), at the National Press Club yesterday.
The Election Commission on Thursday upheld the Bogra returning officer’s decision to reject Hero Alom’s candidacy because he had failed to properly collect the signatures of 1% of Bogra 4 constituency voters.
In a cynical tone, Hero Alom said: “Many are accusing the media of sensationalism for writing about me. Apparently, the media are doing too many news items on me. The media has become crazy about ‘Hero Alam.’ Those who are calling me and the media crazy are the real mad ones.
“The media is showcasing a particular talent to the entire nation. They are giving him [referring to himself in the third person] respect. If we, the ordinary people are mad, then the critics are equally mad. They do not know how to respect a talented individual. They are strangling talent in this country.
“Currently, the people of this country do not want Awami League or BNP. People want independent candidates. For that reason, a law [referring to Representation of the People Order (RPO)] has been enacted so that no independent candidates can contest the elections,” Alom said.
He continued: “New faces willing to participate in the country’s development process are being barred from coming forward. We wanted to create a ‘Sonar Bangla’ through a united front. Some people want to stay in power without doing that. We do not want to mix politics with business. You have started commercializing politics. Stop your businesses and let us move forward.
“Politicians do not tell the truth to the nation’s people. If they (Election Commission) were honest, then they could not have enacted this law.”
Referring to enforced disappearances and allegations of the government’s increasing grip on civil liberties, Hero said: “If we are too honest then we are thrown in jail. Otherwise, we are made to disappear. If the EC knew our grief then they would have never passed this law. We [referring to independent candidates] will move the Supreme Court against the commission’s decision.”