Jamaat chief promises ‘express development’ in five years if granted mandate

Jamaat-e-Islami chief Shafiqur Rahman has said the party expects to launch what it calls an “express train of development” within five years if it secures the people’s mandate.

While addressing a programme of pro-Jamaat diploma engineers on Saturday afternoon, he said Bangladesh must be transformed with the people’s cooperation.

“We believe that in five years, we won’t be able to launch a bullet train of development, but God willing, we can launch an express train. A bullet train will also be launched in time.”

He said, in society, the struggle for status often outweighs the sense of responsibility. However, if individuals perform their duties with sincerity, dignity will follow them naturally, he added,

Drawing a comparison with Japan, Shafiqur said that Japanese workers maintain strict discipline at work, devoting nine hours a day to their employers.

“Within those nine hours, one hour is their leisure period... 40 minutes for their lunch, 10 minutes for their first break, and another 10 minutes for a light break. During this hour, they can talk to friends or family members if they wish. But for the eight working hours, their mobile phones remain silent or switched off. This is because they say this time is not theirs, it belongs to their employer... whether that be the government or a company.”