United News of Bangladesh

BNP acting secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Tuesday said normal gas supply across the country is expected to be restored by the first or second week of September. He made the remarks while talking to reporters after paying homage and offering prayers at the graves of BNP founder and late president Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital in the morning. Rizvi said Bangladesh has also been affected by the ongoing global energy crisis particularly due to the US-Iran war and disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. “This is a global crisis. Ships cannot come through the Strait of Hormuz because of the US-Iran war and fuel supplies are being disrupted. When one or two ships tried to come bombs were dropped there,” he said. He said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman is taking measures to address the energy crisis  allocating Tk 40,000 crore from the budget for the energy and power sector to resolve the gas shortage. Referring to the technical problems at the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) in Maheshkhali, Rizvi said repairs have already been completed and regasification has begun. “Regasification has now started. Normal gas supply will be ensured by the first or second week of September, and electricity will also be available. We are already seeing some indications of that,” he said. Speaking about BNP’s founding anniversary, Rizvi said the party believes in politics based on fulfilling its commitments to people. He said BNP has come to power through a free and fair election and PM Tarique Rahman has been working tirelessly, day and night, to fulfil the pledges made to the people after taking office. On the challenges facing the party and government, Rizvi said there are various challenges, conspiracies and plots, but Tarique Rahman is leading the government while confronting them. “If there were no challenges, there would be no credit in overcoming them and achieving something good,” he said. Rizvi said the government is also working to implement BNP’s commitments including the Farmers Card, Family Card and allowances for imams and muezzins. Asked about the apparent overlap between the party and the government, as BNP is a political party while the government is a separate entity, Rizvi termed the question an “ambiguous term.” “The people voted for the party, and the party formed the government. The ministers in the government are BNP leaders. Most of them are BNP leaders. So when the people voted for and elected the party, its members will naturally run the government,” he said. He said BNP had repeatedly made it clear that its leaders and activists, from grassroots members to the national level, were part of the government’s broader effort. “Our leaders and activists will properly inform the people about all government programmes being implemented for public welfare and in the public interest. There is no contradiction in this,” Rizvi said. He stressed that the party and government remain separate entities, but the responsibility of running the government lies with BNP and its leaders.

BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Wednesday said the late Begum Khaleda Zia, thrice-former prime minister and matriarch of the BNP, was killed through a conspiracy and described her as a martyr. “Since the Ershad regime and throughout Hasina’s 17 years of unbearable fascist rule, various conspiracies were hatched to remove her from the world. Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman and Begum Khaleda Zia were also killed through conspiracies. She too is a martyr,” he said. Rizvi made the remarks while briefing journalists after a joint meeting at the BNP central office in Nayapaltan in the afternoon, ahead of the party’s 48th founding anniversary. He said the two of them had relentlessly struggled for the nation, its people, democracy, the right to speak and freedom of expression, and that every effort had been made to remove both of them from the world. Recalling the history of BNP, Rizvi said the party was founded by “a rare man” who inspired a misguided nation by declaring independence for the liberation of the motherland. Rizvi said Ziaur Rahman’s assassination also dealt a blow to democracy, as within a few months Hussain Muhammad Ershad came to power and democracy was subsequently killed. Against this backdrop, he said, Ziaur Rahman’s wife, the “extraordinarily courageous” Begum Khaleda Zia, took charge of BNP to restore democracy. “She led BNP through movements and struggles. Begum Khaleda Zia turned BNP into pure gold by putting it through fire. She herself was tortured and persecuted, and numerous false cases were filed against her,” Rizvi said. Rizvi said BNP had developed into a broad-based political organisation under the influence of the two leaders. “From one end of the country to the other, BNP has a strong base in different localities. Across Bangladesh, BNP has become a strong organisation,” he said. According to Rizvi, this was BNP’s greatest achievement and the reason why the party could not be defeated or forced to surrender despite severe repression, torture and fascist oppression. He said BNP had consequently become a popular political party and had played an “extraordinarily nationalist and patriotic” role in every sphere, including domestic and foreign policy. “We believe in strengthening our own sovereignty and protecting our own independence. We do not want any other country to be subjugated, and we respect the independence of other countries. Similarly, we want other countries to respect our independence and sovereignty,” Rizvi said. He said BNP is now widely respected because of this ideology. Among those present at the joint meeting were BNP Chairman’s Adviser and Dhaka South City Corporation Administrator Abdus Salam; Joint Secretary Generals Khairul Kabir Khokon, Habib-un-Nabi Khan Sohel and Abdus Salam Azad; Water Resources Minister Mohammad Shahiduddin Chowdhury Anee; and leaders and activists of BNP and its affiliated and associate organisations.