DHAKA – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today called upon the people to stay alert so that the undemocratic force does not come to power and play ducks and drakes with the fate of the people by taking advantage of differences of parties and opinions.“It is natural that there will be differences of parties and opinions in multiparty democracy. But we will have to remain alert so that the differences cannot harm democracy, and any undemocratic force does not come to power and play ducks and drakes with the fate of the people by taking its advantage,” she said.
The Prime Minister made the comments while addressing the swearing-in ceremony of the newly elected mayor and councilors of Gazipur City Corporation (GCC) at the Prime Minister’s Office here this morning.
The Prime Minister said Bangladesh Awami League believes that the democratic rights of the people are protected and they (people) can enjoy their basic and constitutional rights.
“We are striving hard to ensure voting and constitutional rights of the people and we want that the people will elect their representatives through ballots,” she said.
She said that the Awami League’s belief in ensuring voting rights to the people has been reflected in all the 5,691 elections held in the last four and a half years.
Mentioning that no country could achieve its desired goal without democracy, Sheikh Hasina said all the polls including JS by-elections, city corporation, upazila, pourasabha and union
parishad that elected 63,909 public representatives were held in a free, fair and neutral manner.
“The country did not witness such peaceful elections in the past as no unwanted incident took place about the poll results and none could raise any allegation about it,” she said.
Referring to the stunning development in different sectors, the Prime Minister said her government wants to stand the nation on its own feet. “We believe in balanced development. We want to move forward keeping our head high and we do not want to beg to anybody,” she said.
Sheikh Hasina urged the elected representatives including the newly elected mayor and councilors of the GCC to work together for the welfare of the nation by rising above differences of political opinions.
“I would like to request you to strive hard to make easy the life of the people by developing your respective areas,” she said.
Congratulating the newly elected the GCC mayor and councilors, the Prime Minister assured of giving allout cooperation in accomplishing their duties and responsibilities. “Let us come to work together to build the nation so that it could move ahead further by keeping its head high,” she said.
Earlier, Sheikh Hasina administered the oath to first elected mayor of GCC Professor MA Mannan, while LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Syed Ashraful Islam administered oath to 76 councilors including 19 female councilors elected from the reserved seats.
Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury, Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni, Industries Minister Dilip Barua, Adviser to the Prime Minister Dr Mashiur Rahman, State Minister for LGRD and Cooperatives Jahangir Kabir Nanak and State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Meher Afroz Chumki, Gazipur District Administrator Akhtaruzzaman, PM’s Principal Secretary Shaikh Md Wahid-Uz-Zaman and Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad, among others, were present.
The maiden election to the newly-constituted Gazipur City Corporation was held on July 6 in a free, fair and neutral manner. – BSS
