Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said the people of Bangladesh will vote the ruling Awami League to power again at the next general election.
She also instructed top party leaders to raise support for the Awami League by showcasing the development of the country under the Awami League-led government and highlighting the failures of the BNP regimes.
“I hope the people will vote for us in the next election because we have changed the country. The Awami League believes in democracy. We have confidence in the people,” Sheikh Hasina said during her introductory speech at a presidium meeting of the party at Ganabhaban on Tuesday afternoon.
When contacted, Awami League leaders who attended the meeting told this correspondent that the ruling party would assist the search committee in forming the new Election Commission.
AL leaders suggest names of EC candidates to Sheikh Hasina
Meeting insiders said Sheikh Hasina sought names for the Election Commission from her party colleagues at the meeting, as the search committee had sought recommendations from registered political parties.
Each party can recommend up to 10 names through email by 5pm on Friday.
Four presidium members of the ruling party told Dhaka Tribune they had not suggested any names to the party president yet, but some other leaders had written down names and handed them to Sheikh Hasina during the meeting.
Party sources said the ruling party leaders suggested the names of a former cabinet secretary, former secretaries, a former PSC and other top officials of government offices, former military and police high officials, and also experts from civil society.
Clear instructions for next election
During the meeting, the Awami League president urged party leaders to start campaigning for the next polls by championing the development work of the Awami League government over the last 13 years.
Sheikh Hasina said the government had handled the Covid-19 pandemic dexterously, ensuring economic stability through various stimulus packages.
“At this stage, Bangladesh's GDP growth is 6.94% and per capita income is $2,591,” she told the presidium members.
“We have achieved the status of a developing country. The quality of life has improved in Bangladesh because we are in power,” she said.
A presidium member of the Awami League and former minister told this newspaper on Tuesday night: “As a political party, we have been doing good, so far. But our leader said we have to be strict against party leaders and activists who are undermining the party image.”
“When the people are looking at the Awami League positively, why should we tolerate it if someone goes against the people?” the prime minister queried, as quoted by the party leader.
Mentioning the recent Naryanganj City Corporation poll results, the prime minister said: “The Awami League can achieve the impossible if everyone is united.”
Sheikh Hasina also gave a detailed description of some elections during the tenure of the BNP and said: “At that time. no fair election was held in Bangladesh. Every election was a festival of rigging in the name of election. People got only corruption, not development.”
The prime minister went on: “We are providing health care through community clinics. The Amar Bari Amar Khamar project and the housing project for the homeless people are bringing all facilities to the people’s doorsteps.”
She said no one would be left homeless and everyone would have access to electricity in her government’s tenure.
‘Boost activities at grassroots level’
The Awami League president wanted party activities to begin at the grassroots level after the recent surge of Covid-19 died down across the country.
She also gave instructions for a proper analysis report to be prepared of the recent Union Parishad elections across the country in association with divisional organizing secretaries of the Awami League.
“A decision over the rebel candidates has been taken and now it is time to take action against the leaders who backed the rebels,” Sheikh Hasina said, according to meeting sources.
Awami League Presidium members Matiya Chowdhury, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Abdur Razzaque, Faruk Khan, Abdur Rahman, General Secretary Obaidul Quader, Publicity Secretary Abdu Sobhan Golap, among others, were present at the meeting.
Ruling party leaders Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya and Quamrul Islam attended Tuesday’s Presidium meeting for the first time. Both were nominated as Presidium members by Sheikh Hasina recently.
