BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman said on Wednesday that his party envisions a future where the country is governed by a national government to fully harness the power of national unity.
At a views exchange meeting, he also expressed the party’s willingness to introduce a bicameral parliament through constitutional amendments to ensure governance with support from all segments of society.
“We have observed how members of a single party dominate everywhere in a partisan government, rendering the positions of others insignificant. Consequently, the country was deprived of services of a significant portion of the population,” Tarique said.
He added that the BNP does not want to repeat the mistake of missing the opportunity to harness the power of national unity as seen before.
The BNP leader said the opportunity to leverage the power of national unity was missed immediately after independence. “We do not want to repeat that mistake. With the support of the people, the BNP aims to see the country governed by a national government in the future.”
Tarique also said those who participated in the struggle to restore democracy and people’s voting rights will all be involved in the future governance of the country, ensuring that the benefits of their contributions are not overlooked.
He remarked that the freedom fighters fought valiantly on the battlefield and secured independence for the nation in 1971. “The key to winning that struggle was unquestioned national unity. It is unfortunate but true that we failed to utilise that unity after independence.”
The BNP leader noted that from the very beginning, the nation was divided when the Awami League established a partisan government instead of forming a necessary national government after independence. “As a result, a significant portion of the population was unable to contribute to nation-building despite their willingness.”
BNP Standing Committee members Mirza Abbas, Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, and Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, among others, also addressed the meeting.
Tarique said it is important to inform the nation about another significant reform plan of the BNP, which involves introducing a bicameral parliament.
He mentioned that there are numerous scholars, talented teachers, artists, writers, journalists, researchers, doctors, technical experts, and humanitarian workers in the country who are not traditionally involved in politics but are eager to contribute to the development and governance of the nation.
However, the BNP leader said within the current constitutional framework, there is no opportunity for these individuals to contribute as members of parliament.
“To utilise their services and contributions to the cause of the country, BNP wants to see a bicameral parliament system with an upper house included in the constitution like many other countries in the world,” he said.
Tarique said he is just humbly sharing BNP’s future plans and intentions, because he knows that the support of the people of the country can only make these plans a reality.
“I hope people won’t certainly want those parties or individuals included in a national government who have turned the entire country into their party’s and family’s personal property and those who, under the guise of so-called development, have burdened each of us with a debt of 1.5 lakh taka and siphoned off thousands of crore taka abroad,” he added.
Tarique congratulated BNP leaders and activists for their steadfast participation and trust in the party over the past seventeen years of relentless struggles for the restoration of democracy.
He urged them not to let their sacrifices be diminished by the misdeeds of a few reckless individuals and advised them to remain vigilant and resist any troublemakers.
The BNP leader also advised party leaders to earn the trust and confidence of the people by aligning with their hopes, expectations, and language.
He instructed them to use their political acumen and strategies to tackle emerging and unseen adversaries.
