Shawkat Hossain Hiron, outgoing Mayor and 14-party alliance backed
Sammilito Nagorik Committee nominated Mayor candidate of Barisal City
Corporation (BCC) on Tuesday sought apology for his past mistakes and
announced a 23-pont election manifesto stressing on changing Barisal to a
modern, beautiful city. Besides, he also promised to expanded services for the
citizens.
On same day, alleging corruption against Hiron and biasness of EC and
administration, an independent candidate Jubo League leader Mahmudul Hoque
Khan Mamun announcing his 19-point election manifesto promising to make
BCC transparent, accountable and free from corruption and irregularities.
Hiron announcing his manifesto in a press conference at Ashwini Kumar Hail in
the afternoon said within a short tenure of 55 months as Mayor he tried his best
to serve the citizens. He claimed that he restored peace and
prosperity, freed city
from terrorism, extortion, drug peddling, ensured peaceful political
and religious
co-existences.
”I have tried my best to make the city beautiful, neat and clean, and
during my development works if any body affected or suffered or I did
any mistake, I apologies to them for those,” Hiron said and urged them
reelect him
as Mayor to correct and compensates those.
Hiron highlighted his expanded development programmes for the women,
children, disables, recreation, and amusement, investment for
business, employment
and industrialisation.
He also assured to create ‘Wife Zones’ on educational campuses and at public
squares, construct community centres, flyovers for solving traffic
jams in the city.
Attempts to establish science and technology university and standard
educational institutions free from admission trades, a modern general
and children hospital, connectivity with national network railway,
electricity and
natural gas supply, EPZ, will be made, he also promised.
Barisal would be made a green and colourful city by plantation trees,
besides making
it free from water logging by excavating canals and developing
drainage and sewerage
managements, ring roads and embankments. He also promised to upgrading
slums to colonies, balancing development between the old city and
expanded new areas.
Prof. Md. Hanif, convener of Sammilito Nagorik Committee, presided
over the programme, while it was attended, among others, by Amir
Hossain Amu, Tofayel Ahmed, Abul Hasanat Abdullah, Talukdar Md. Yunus,
Bahauddin Nasim, Mahabubuddin Birbikram, Nirmal Goswami, and Balaram
Poddar.
On other hand Mayor candidate Khan Mamun alleged that biased EC and
administration failed to maintain level playing field among the Mayor
candidates and regularly harassing, threatening and suppressing his
election campaigners.
Rival candidate Hiron randomly violating election conduct rule, using
coloured billboards, propagating extra-time, openly addressing me as
‘extra-player’, ‘B-team’ and administration and EC remained deaf and
dumb in taking any action against ruling party backed candidate, Khan
Mamun said.
Announcing election manifesto Khan Mamun said his first and most prior
work should be to free BCC from corruption, irregularities, and to ensure
maximum use of the announced budget with transparency and
accountability. He also vowed to free the city from drug peddling,
extortion and
terrorism.
( Barisal Correspondent)
