BNP senior leader Maj (retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed on Monday claimed that the international community has snubbed the January-5 national election with their decision not to send observers to monitor the ‘unilateral’ polls. “The EU, the Commonwealth and the US have clearly stated that they won’t send observers to monitor the January-5 election. They’ve understood that a fair election is not possible in a country where 154 candidates got elected uncontested,” he said. The BNP vice-chairman came up with the remarks while addressing a discussion, titled ‘Democracy is confined and humanity is at stake in the month of victory’, at the Jatiya Press Club arranged by Jatiyatabadi Muktijoddha Dal. Hafiz also alleged that the government has snatched the country’s majority people’s voting rights by electing 154 candidates unopposed before the election is held. “The Prime Minister talks about democracy, but she has presented the nation such a democracy where 154 candidates got elected unchallenged before the election,” he added. The army officer-turned politician also threatened that they will resist the January-5 election at any cost. Hafiz said the ruling party has no sympathy for the country’s people as it is an autocratic party. “They had annihilated democracy in the past. Now they’re again out to obliterate it. The Awami League-led government is solely responsible for the country’s current sordid state.” He criticised the Prime Minister for her proposal for a talks on 11th parliamentary elections saying the government is trying to create a new issue to divert people’s attention from the unilateral polls to a different direction. – UNB
