Bangladesh Nationalist Party secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday said that there was a messy situation prevailing in the country, as some political parties were calling for elections in the proportional representation system even without understanding what the system meant.
The nation is passing through a critical juncture and is now in a transition, searching for a path to restore democracy, he said while addressing a discussion event organised by Zia Parishad at the National Press Club in Dhaka.
Many people think that a few individuals responsible for reforms could hold a few meetings and implement some changes and thereby complete the reform process, exclaimed the BNP secretary general.
Reforms don鈥檛 happen聽 that way, he said, adding that they must come through a process and the process was a continuous one.
Fakhrul said, 鈥楥an a country be run by a few individuals hired from abroad? No, it can鈥檛 be. This is a simple truth that we must realise.鈥�
The BNP secretary general resented that whenever their party demanded election of the people鈥檚 representatives, it was said that the BNP only hankered after elections.
He went on to say that without elections, representatives cannot be chosen, parliament cannot be formed, and, therefore, the people鈥檚 rule cannot be established.
Fakhrul termed the current situation a terrible crisis, saying that Bangladesh was passing through both a political vacuum and an adverse economic climate.
The country must come out of this and put in place a political and economic structure that brings about well-being of the people of Bangladesh, he emphasised.
He added that the fascist force that was the Awami League had caused immense damage to the country.
鈥楾he Awami League has destroyed all the institutions 鈥� not just the judiciary, administration, health sector, and universities, but also the political parties,鈥� Fakhrul said.
He said that the bureaucracy of the country was a major obstacle to development and called it a 鈥榥egative bureaucracy鈥�.
The BNP leader said that to transform this bureaucracy into a positive force it was necessary to connect it with the people and carry out the required reforms.
鈥楾he main goal of the political parties should be to go to the people, understand their needs, learn from them, and shape governance accordingly,鈥� Fakhrul said.
The event, titled 鈥楾he Fall of Fascist Killer Hasina and the Anniversary of the July-August Uprising鈥� was presided over by the Zia Parishad vice-chair Shafiqul Islam.
