Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday asked the law enforcement agencies to take proper action against cybercrimes.
“We’ll have to be careful against cybercrimes and take action accordingly. I would like to tell all , including RAB and every intelligence agency, that they will have to play a proper role in this regard,” she said.
The prime minister was addressing the 19th founding anniversary of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) at the RAB Forces Headquarters in Kurmitola here.
Noting that her government built the country as Digital Bangladesh, she said the cybercrimes have increased alongside creation of huge scopes due to the digitization.
Hasina said they made the digital Bangladesh for the welfare of the people not for sufferings.
She said there are some anti-state forces. They see nothing, no matter how much good work Bangladesh does. There is another class of people who defame Bangladesh before the foreigners and they get financial or other benefits for it.
Talking about the sanction imposed on Rab (officials) by the USA, the premier asked the RAB members not to be upset hearing the words from others rather move with self-confidence.
“This is our country that was achieved through the sacrifice of blood. In this country, we know who does what job and we’ll judge them. We’ll have to work with this confidence,” she said.
“We will have to identify those who tarnish institutions of Bangladesh one after another by carrying out propaganda and defaming Bangladesh. We’ll have to find out why they are doing it and their purpose,” she added.
The PM said Bangladesh can judge who has done good or bad. “If anyone commits an offense, we must speak about it. Don’t be upset hearing words from others. You’ll have to move with the sense of self- esteem and self-confidence, which is the biggest matter. You will have to keep it in mind,” she said.
About the activities of teenage gangs, PM Hasina said parents, teachers and public representatives alongside the law enforcement agencies have also the responsibility to work for eliminating the teenage gangs.
“The teenage gangs must be stopped,” she said.
The premier also asked the RAB to give more focus on containing drug abuse to protect the youth from drug addiction.
“We’re getting self-sufficient and developed financially. But the adverse impact of drugs is getting high at the same time. Many people are getting addicted to drugs,” she said, adding that this social disease is spreading from the high-class to low-class people.
She said a family suffers immensely if any member gets addicted to drugs. “In this case, the Rab is conducting a drive. It is considered as a social movement. So, we’ve been able to contain it largely. But all will have to be more active in this case,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina asked RAB to play an effective role in maintaining the country’s peace, security and stability to ease Bangladesh’s journey as a developing country to the transformation of a developed and prosperous country by 2040.
She said Bangladesh has gained the status of a developing country.
“We still have time in hand. We will start our journey as a developing country from 2026. We’re preparing for that from now on. So, we’ve to maintain peace, security and stability in the country,” she added.
Talking about the commodity prices during the upcoming Ramadan, the PM asked all the authorities concerned to ensure none will suffer during the Ramadan month.
“We see a peculiar trend in our country some people seek to make profit during the Ramadan though it is a month of austerity. All should pay attention so that the general people won’t suffer,” she said.
PM Hasina said the RAB has successfully been conducting drives against food adulteration as well.
She also appreciated the RAB’s activities in successfully tackling the terrorism, militancy, and piracy in the Bangladesh’s most important place,the Sundarbans.
She said “I believe that the force will play its role as it did in the past with due dutifulness, effectiveness and activeness to maintain peace and stability of the country.”
Hasina said the elite force RAB has earned the people’s trust and confidence by containing various crimes successfully and destroying networks of the militants and terrorists through its nationwide massive crackdown.
The prime minister said her government has been able to declare the Sundarbans, where the people of the locality did not even lead their lives normally, free from pirates in 2018 due to the praise worthy role of the RAB.
“So far 238 pirates from 32 gangs have surrendered due to the intensified drives of the RAB,” she said
Mentioning that her government has been working to rehabilitate 421 militants and pirates who surrendered to ensure none of them returns to the misdeeds again.
The PM stressed the need for de-radicalisation and rehabilitation of the militants, saying that it will not be enough to rehabilitate them, but it is also equally important to de-radicalise them so that they would never return to criminal life.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan and RAB Director General Addl. IGP M Khurshid Hossain also spoke at the programme.
