Keep vehicles off roads on Dec 9
BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday urged all not to drive vehicles on the streets during the opposition's countrywide road blockade programme on Sunday.
"Please don't take your vehicle out on the street and make the blockade programme successful by joining with the people to resolve all the problems," he told a rally before the party's central office in the capital's Nayapaltan.
The BNP-led 18-party alliance organised the programme to mark December 6 as Democracy Day. On this day in 1990, military dictator HM Ershad was ousted from power through a mass upsurge.
Blasting the government for corruption, Fakhrul said the World Bank team of anti-corruption experts was not happy with the ACC's investigation and they have already left the country. "The prime minister had termed Abul Hossain a patriot, but now it has been proved that he is a king of thieves."
The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) does not want to include the name of former communications minister Abul Hossain among the accused in the Padma bridge corruption conspiracy case as it (ACC) knows that all the bribe money was siphoned off by this person (Abul), he complained.
The BNP leader expressed apprehensions that the prices of gas, electricity and oil might be hiked again. "But we won't accept it. We will organise a movement against any price hike decision," he warned.
Party leaders Rafiqul Islam Mia, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Mirza Abbas, Moazzem Hossain Alal, among others, spoke at the rally, with BNP Dhaka city unit member secretary Abdus Salam in the chair.
Several thousand opposition leaders, workers and supporters attended the rally on the Nayapaltan road, causing a halt to traffic for several hours.
The 18-party alliance had declared the road blockade programme as part of its ongoing movement to restore the caretaker government system.
STANDING COMMITTEE MEET
Meanwhile, the BNP chairperson urged the leaders of her party and the 18-party alliance to "actively participate" in the blockade programme.
Khaleda Zia made the call last night at separate meetings of the BNP standing committee and 18-party alliance at her Gulshan office in the capital, insiders said.
The opposition chief, however, asked the party leaders and alliance partners to observe the programme peacefully and not to engage in clashes with law enforcers.
“The government will have to take all the responsibilities for any situation arising from any obstruction by the authorities or the ruling party men," Mirza Fakhrul told reporters after the meeting.
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