Next Election: Hasina asks AL men to start campaigning

Describing 2019 as the election year for Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged Awami League followers, both at home and abroad, to carry out campaign for the party to retain power as it works for development.

"Country's development will continue only if Awami League is in power. The country will fall behind if any other party other than AL comes to power," she said.

The PM said this while speaking at a civic reception organised by All European Awami League here at Four Seasons Hotel on Tuesday evening.

She said the next general election is getting closer. "It's coming, it is not far away; 2019 is the time for election."

Hasina said the Awami League sincerely wants the country's development as it sacrificed a lot for Bangladesh.

The prime minister also urged the expatriate Bangladeshis to start their campaign over the next general election. "When you'll return to your own areas back home, you'll have to ask your fellow villagers one question whether they want development or not," she said.

Hasina, also the chief of the ruling AL, said it is only the AL that can maintain the pace of development as this organisation was built by Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Briefly describing various development activities of her government, she said Bangladesh is now the "role model" of development.

Regarding agitation programmes by a section of people against development activities, she said there are some people who dislike everything. "They always look for faults in everything and go for a movement. It's quite normal there'll be movement on each issue. Let them carry out their agitations, and let's do our development work," she said.

About the war crimes trial, Hasina said the trial of war criminals is going on and some of the verdicts have already been executed.

Alleging that Ziaur Rahman and Khaleda Zia had given the national flag to the war criminals, she said those who presented the nation flag to the war criminals should face the same punishment like the war criminals.

Mentioning various destructive politics of the BNP and its chief Khaleda, Hasina said what could they give to the country as they killed people in the name of a movement?

On the all-party election-time government in 2013, the prime minister said she had phoned Khaleda and invited her to join the election-time all-party government.

"Even, I had offered her [Khaleda] the home ministry, but she didn't join it, she even didn't join the election; she tried to resist holding the election. It was a conspiracy to destroy democracy," she said.

Hasina criticised Khaleda as she did not get a chance to enter Khaleda's house as the gate was closed from inside when she went there to console her after her younger son Arafat Rahman Koko died.

Describing the expatriates as Bangladesh ambassadors, she urged them to uphold the country's image through their positive activities.

PM RETURNS HOME

Hasina returned home last night after wrapping up her four-day official visit to Hungary where she attended the Budapest Water Summit 2016.

A VVIP flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying the PM and her entourage landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 11:00pm.

Earlier, the VVIP flight of the national flag carrier left Ferenc Liszt International Airport in Budapest at 10:15am (local time).

PM's younger sister Sheikh Rehana and Bangladesh Ambassador to Hungary Abu Zafar along with his wife saw Hasina off at the airport.

This was the first head of government-level bilateral visit between the two countries. Hasina reached Budapest on Sunday by a VVIP flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

During the tour, Bangladesh and Hungary signed three memoranda of understanding (MoUs).