Advisors not leaving country, will attend swearing-in: Press Secretary Shafiqul

Chief Advisor’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam has described the interim government’s advisors as the “proud sons of Bangladesh”, assuring that they are all in the country and will continue to live here to continue contributing to the development of the nation.

His comment followed speculations that some of the advisors might be leaving the country soon, bdnews24.com reports. 

On Sunday, Shafiqul also confirmed that the advisors will remain in office until the new government's swearing-in ceremony, which they are scheduled to attend.

He spoke at the Foreign Service Academy after the final meeting of the Advisory Council on Sunday.

Speculations intensified after the chief advisor’s Special Assistant Faiz Ahmed Taiyeb left for Germany on an Emirates Airlines flight early Friday morning.

After the departure made headlines in local media, Taiyeb clarified on Facebook that he left Dhaka after “properly” taking leave from his workplace.

When asked if other advisors were also leaving or how their tenures would conclude, Shafiqul said: “They will arrive at the ceremony in flag-bearing vehicles. After the ceremony concludes, those vehicles will drop them off at their homes, but the flags will no longer be displayed. That is all."

"They are all in the country. They are proud sons of this nation and will continue to give their maximum effort to move the country forward in the future," he added.

On Faiz’s departure, he said he had nothing to add beyond the former special assistant's own statement.

Shafiqul confirmed the swearing-in schedule for Feb 17, saying that MPs will take their oaths at 10am at parliament, followed by the prime minister and the cabinet at 4pm at the South Plaza.

A meeting with a three-member BNP delegation is scheduled for Sunday to ensure that the parliamentary swearing-in ceremony remains "beautiful and seamless".

During Sunday’s Advisory Council meeting, a vote of thanks was held.

The advisors, law-enforcing agencies, the Election Commission, and the outgoing cabinet secretary were all formally thanked, he said.

The Advisory Council meeting highlighted that for the first time there were no attacks on religious minorities during the election, Shafiqul said.

He said that the meeting also observed that the police force has "regained its dignity" through this election, which was considered the best election ever, especially for the post-election environment when there was almost no violence.

The home advisor told the meeting that only one death was truly related to election violence and that a committee was formed to investigate the Hatia incident.