Reaffirming that the ongoing drives against corruption, militancy and drug will continue, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said she will not spare anyone, no matter who the offender is. "The drive against corruption, terrorism, militancy and drugs will continue. I won't spare anyone, no matter who they are. I won't have any sympathy for them because I work hard day and night (round the clock) for the people of the country," she said. The Prime Minister said this while addressing the 7th National Congress of Bangladesh Awami Juba League, the youth wing of Bangladesh Awami League, at Suhrawardy Udyan in the capital.
She said the young generation should be groomed with the spirit of dedication and the wellbeing of the country and its people. "Our young generation will have to stay away from drugs, terrorism, militancy and corruption," Sheikh Hasina said. Pointing at the activists of Jubo League, Hasina said those who do politics for the welfare of the country and its people rising above self-interest become successful.
Since the establishment of Jubo League in 1972, she said, it has been making huge contributions to every movement and struggle, including the movement against
military dictators. “This Juba League will have to be developed with careful eyes so that it doesn’t earn any bad name, rather can move on with ideology and respect, and can work for the welfare of the country,” the PM said.
She asked the activists of the Juba League to nurture the ideology of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and read two books —’Oshomapto Attojiboni’ (The Unfinished Memoirs) and Karagarer Rojnamcha (Diary in Jail) - to know about his ideology.
“We’ll have to move on always upholding his (Bangabandhu) ideology,” said Sheikh Hasina.
She said Bangladesh has become the role model of development today following the path of the Father of the Nation.
Earlier, Sheikh Hasina, also the President of Awami League, inaugurated the triennial national council of Jubo League by hoisting the national flag, and releasing pigeons and balloons at the venue at 11:00am.
AL general secretary Obaidul Quader also spoke at the inaugural session of the council, which was presided over by Juba League convener Chayan Islam. Juba League general secretary Harunur Rashid placed the report over the organisation before the council. Some 28,000 councillors from 77 organising districts across the country joined the 7th national congress of the youth wing of the ruling Awami League.
New leaders of the Juba League were set to be elected at the council session at Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB) in the afternoon. Sheikh Fazlul Haque Moni formed Bangladesh Awami Jubo League on November 11, 1972 at the directive of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The youth brought the independence of the country by taking up arms and sacrificing their blood at the clarion call of the Father of the Nation during the 1971 Liberation War. “So, we want this young generation to develop themselves with an ideology.”
The Prime Minister said Awami League had not been established suddenly as it was developed through various struggles to materialise the rights of the repressed, exploited and deprived people. Every associate body of the party was also established for the welfare of the people, making the country’s independence meaningful and taking the benefits of the independence to the doorstep of people, she said.
“If anyone is deviated from this ideology, he or she cannot give anything to the country,” she added.
Mentioning that the utilisation of latent, power and potential is very essential to develop a country, the PM asked the young generation to work, being imbued with patriotism, for building the country with the mentality of sacrifice.
Coming down heavily on the BNP-Jamaat regime, the PM said Bangladesh had lost its dignity throughout the world due to their misrule. Bangladesh had become the world champion in the corruption index for five consecutive years, she said adding killing, militancy and corruption had been their principles.
Taking a swipe at BNP leaders for raising questions about elections, the Prime Minister said they are now talking many things about polls, but they got only 29 seats in the 2008 general election.
‘No-one raised question about the 2008 election. If BNP is so much popular party as to why they secured only 29 seats in the election,” she said adding that many people now have forgotten that.