BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia came down heavily on her party policymakers in a meeting last night for failing to materialise the demand for election under non-partisan administration and highlight the current government's corruption, sources said.
The former premier was particularly harsh with Dhaka city unit BNP convener Mirza Abbas, also a standing committee member, holding him responsible for the party's recent inertia in the capital.
She even reportedly asked Abbas, who has a lot of influence over the leaders and activists of BNP in the capital, to step down as the chief of the Dhaka city unit if he could not carry out his main duty of forming a full committee.
A member of the BNP standing committee who attended yesterday's meeting, told the Dhaka Tribune on condition of anonymity that Khaleda lambasted Abbas for failing to organise a rally in the capital on November 8, which the government did not permit.
In reply, Abbas tried to explain the predicament saying: “The government has absolute control over Dhaka. Moreover, there are cases against more or less all the leaders.”
At this point, Khaleda interrupted him saying: “You failed to organise a rally at the Suhrawardy Udyan. You even failed to announce any programme protesting this. I do not want to hear any excuses. If you cannot carry out your duty properly, then step down from the position [of Dhaka city unit convener].”
Then another standing committee member said they could call a hartal protesting the government's decision to not allow the BNP to hold the rally.
Khaleda, who was in a very bad mood, said in reply: “You do not take to the streets after enforcing a hartal. Moreover, hartal will give the government more opportunity to repress the party leaders and activists. Hartal will be called when time comes.”
After the Dhaka Metropolitan Police denied granting permission to hold a rally at the Suhrawardy Udyan, the BNP in protest announced countrywide demonstrations. However, no major activities of the party could be seen either in the capital or anywhere else around the country.
During last night's meeting with the standing committee members of the party, the BNP chief cautioned the leaders reminding them that the government had linked Sylhet city mayor's name with the killing of former finance minister Shah AMS Kibria.
“The way the government is moving forward, the situation will go out of our control if it continues. So you have to talk now,” she said.
She then said halting anti-government movement after the January 5 election was a mistake because that had given the government chances to gain strength and repress the opposition activists with more vigour.
“Had we not stopped the movement, the government would have had no option but to hold midterm polls,” Khaleda said, adding: “You [policymakers] failed to give me correct advice. Instead you just agreed to whatever I had decided just to save your own backs. Do not repeat this in future.”
She then rebuked the standing committee members saying: “You all are inactive. You have failed to highlight the government's corruption before the public.”
At this point, another standing committee member reportedly said they had been talking about the government's misdeeds and misrules as much as possible.
Clearly, a standing committee member said, the party chief did not think likewise and got furious. “I do not want to listen to all these. I know everything. When we were in power, the way they highlighted [our failures and corruptions], you are nowhere near doing that.”
She also expressed doubts whether she would find the senior leaders of the party beside her if she eventually took to the streets.
Asking her colleagues to work more sincerely and efficiently towards achieving the political goals of the party, Khaleda said: “I will take to the streets soon and you all will have to follow. I will not tolerate any mistakes in the future.”
Last night's meeting with the policymakers was part of a series of meetings that the BNP chief had been holding for a few days now in an attempt to device the next course of action.
On November 10 and 11, she sat with the party advisers and vice-chairmen respectively at her Gulshan office.
Standing committee member Moudud Ahmad, who had remained absent in party programmes since the publication of one of his controversial books, was also present in the meeting but remained silent for the most part.
BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir is likely to hold a briefing today to inform media about the outcomes of the meeting.
