‘We have friends, no masters’

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina today said the Bangalee nation will not bow down to anyone as it has friends in the international arena, but no masters.

She also alerted the people about the conspiracy against the country's independence, sovereignty, and economic emancipation, urging all to make collective efforts to continue Bangladesh's advancement defying all hurdles.

The PM said her country follows the foreign policy - "Friendship to all, malice to none", adopted by the Father of the Nation.

"We have no master, we have friends. So, the Bangalee nation never tolerates anyone's eyes of wrath. If required, the Bangalee nation will defend its independence, sovereignty, honour by sacrificing blood,'' she said in a televised address to the nation on the eve of Independence Day 2024.

"Let's make collective efforts on the 54th Independence Day to further Bangladesh's development and advancement overcoming all the ill tactics and conspiracies," she said.

The speech was aired by different TV channels, radio stations and online platforms, including Bangladesh Television and Bangladesh Betar at 7:30pm.

In her over 17-minute speech, the prime minister said in the last 15 years, her government has transformed Bangladesh into a country of "rising economy" by attaining unprecedented and visible development in the socio-economic sectors that include agriculture, health, education, industry, poverty alleviation, infrastructural development, women empowerment and decrease in the child and maternal mortality rates.

"So, once a poverty-ridden country, Bangladesh now emerges as a rising economy ... Bangladesh has now become the country of 35th largest economy [in the world]," she said.

Mentioning that Bangladesh has been branded as a role model of development on the global stage due to timely measures taken by the Awami League government, she hoped that the country will finally become a developing nation by 2026 as it has already fulfilled all the requirements for that.

The journey of Bangladesh towards prosperity in the last 15 years was not a bed of roses as there were both manmade and natural disasters as well as local and foreign conspiracies, she said.

Bangladesh's economy faced difficulties time and again due to several devastating floods and cyclones, Covid-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, sanctions and counter-sanctions and the recent Israeli attack on Gaza, she said.

The war and pandemic have contributed immensely to the hike in inflation that has been rattling the global economy including Bangladesh, she continued.

Briefly describing the government measures to contain the price hike of essential commodities during the month of Ramadan, she said the government stockpiled several goods such as sugar, chickpea, pulse, and edible oil alongside giving permission to import 50,000 metric tonnes of onion and almost the same amount of potatoes.

Apart from these, fish, meat, egg and milk are being sold at affordable prices from 25 points in the capital city from the beginning of Ramadan for the marginalised people, she said.

The TCB (Trading Corporation of Bangladesh) has been selling rice, pulse, edible oil, sugar, and chickpeas at cheaper prices among one crore cardholder families across the country, she added.

The premier said her government has given a special allocation of 100,628 metric tonnes of rice for 162,800 families ahead of the Eid-ul-Fitr, adding that each of the families will get 10kg of rice free of cost.

Referring to BNP-Jamaat mayhem in 2013-14, 2016 and 2023 in which people were burned to death alongside torching down public and private properties in arson terrorism, she said the gruesome acts still haunt the countrymen.

"We have been trying our best to expedite the country's advancement after facing all the internal and international impediments," she said.

The prime minister said they have made Bangladesh self-reliant in food production and given electricity at every house alongside decreasing the poverty rate to 18.7 percent from 41.5 and hardcore poverty rate to 5.6 percent from 25.1 percent.

She continued that the Awami League government has built the Padma Bridge, Dhaka Metro Rail, Elevated Expressway, and the Third Terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport and introduced highways of four or more lanes connecting the divisional cities which have brought revolutionary changes in the communication system.

The PM alerted the countrymen about the conspiracies against the country's development and prosperity and these have to stop.

The conspirators, including the defeated forces of 1971 and killers of Father of the Nation and his family in 1975 and their accomplices, are still working to stop Bangladesh's non-stop journey towards prosperity to take revenge for their defeat.

"They will launch an attack whenever they get a chance. Awami League is the only hurdle before them. The rise of the defeated forces is assured if they can destroy or make the Awami League weaker. So, kandari [the person who steers the ship] has to be aware," she said.

The premier said she had to face at least 19 attempts on her life and went to jail time and again since she returned to the country in 1981 after six years of forced exile to realise the rights to vote and rice.

"Bangladesh Awami League will never allow ruining democracy that has been earned through the blood of thousands," she said.

"All the political parties and the commoners have to play the role of vanguards to protect the democracy. You have to keep in mind that the constitution is the highest authority to protect and maintain democracy. Anything done bypassing the constitution is an attempt to undermine democracy," she said.

Hasina, also president of the Awami League, said her party always runs the state in accordance with the constitution.

"We've made the parliament centre point of all the activities of the state," she said.

The PM thanked the countrymen for keeping their trust in the Awami League by giving them the mandate for the fourth consecutive term and fifth in total to serve them.