The Awami League (AL) is going to launch its countrywide campaign today (Friday) as the nation prepares for the next general election, which the Sheikh Hasina-led  government wants to hold by December 2018. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is also president of the AL, has directed her party’s central leaders, including presidium members, to gear up work so that the AL returns to power for the third consecutive term.

The party has formed 15 teams, comprising presidium and advisory council members and other central leaders, to run the campaign till the 11th parliamentary elections. This is the first time that presidium members have been made part of the campaign team. The teams will hold organisational tours in districts, cities, as well as at upazila and thana levels, to woo voters and curb internal feuds.

AL general secretary Obaidul Quader will inaugurate the countrywide tour by attending a workers’ meeting at Manikganj at 10am today. The Manikganj district AL will organise the meeting, where AL central leaders—presidium members Sahara Khatun, Abdul Mannan Khan, party joint general secretaries Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Jahangir Kabir Nanok, office secretary Abdus Sobhan Golap and others—will be present.

According to AL insiders, as per the direction of Sheikh Hasina, central leaders will visit the party's 78 organisational districts and go from door-to-door in a bid to make the party popular by projecting the government’s success stories.

Talking to this correspondent, AL presidium member Lt. Col (retd) Muhammad Faruk Khan said the main objective of the nationwide campaign is to further strengthen the organisation at the grassroots level by resolving internal feuds and mobilising public support in favour of the party. “Another objective is to gather information about our party’s possible candidates to update our party chief,” he added.

“Basically the main objective of our organisational tour is to highlight Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s achievements before the people at the grassroots level and instruct local leaders not to get involved in any criminal activities or engage in internal conflicts ahead of the next general election,” AL joint general secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif told The Independent yesterday.

“Our party chief has instructed us to go from door-to-door and make people understand that the present government is working for the better of the country,” said another joint general secretary of the party, Dipu Moni.

Sources said the AL plans to hold programmes on a day-to-day basis throughout the year in a bid to snatch, as party leaders put it, "a great victory".

AL central working committee member Iqbal Hossain Apu said the government has carried out numerous development work in the last nine years and there was no alternative to highlighting these activities before the voters to win the next general election. “We will urge voters during our countrywide tour to give us another chance so that the ongoing development work can continue,” he added.

Moreover, Sheikh Hasina herself will take part in the campaign, party sources said. She is scheduled to start the campaign from Sylhet on January 30, after taking part in prayers at the Mazar of Hazrat Shah Jalal and attending a public meeting at Sylhet city. She will also hold public meetings in every divisional headquarters and is scheduled to visit Barisal on February 8.