Zakir Hossain / Dhaka
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) senior leader Major (retired) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed has warned that Bangladesh may be drawn into a conflict over the interim government’s decision to allow a “humanitarian corridor” for Myanmar’s Rakhine State, without the people’s consent.
“A new danger has emerged before us in the form of a humanitarian corridor. Are we going to get involved in a war without the consent of the people?” Hafiz said while speaking at the launch of the Bangladesh District and Divisional Sports Organisers Association in Dhaka on Saturday.
Describing public anxiety over the issue, the BNP Standing Committee member said, “We are also worried. BNP is the biggest and most popular political party in the country. We don’t know how our country is being run.” Hafiz, a former army officer, reiterated that BNP seeks only a fair election. “People can bring any party to power, and we won’t object. But if people aren’t allowed to choose their representatives through a credible election, politics and democracy cannot flourish.”
He accused the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government of lacking the will to hold elections. “BNP and other democratic parties have struggled for 17 years for free and fair polls. But we don’t see any sign of such an election. Knowledgeable persons are saying it might not happen for two, three, or even five years.”
Hafiz said the government’s “attitude and statements of its advisers” indicate a reluctance to allow full democracy. While expressing support for Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus, Hafiz called for restoring democratic governance, “respecting the blood of several thousand martyrs.” Recalling a meeting with Yunus on February 10, Hafiz said the Chief Adviser had assured BNP leaders that elections would be held by December this year. “But he later said elections would be held by June next year. In this way, they are playing a game with the fate of the state,” he added.