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BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman on Monday said if BNP would be able to come in power with public mandate in future, they will introduce a family card against which food support would be provided to people in accordance with their need.
“Being a political activist, I’ve a wish that if it would be possible for us to work for the country getting by the support of the people of Bangladesh in future like in the past, I want to do a task for the people of Bangladesh. My plan is …. we will specify the number of families in Bangladesh. We will give a family card to each family from the state,” he said.
The BNP leader raised his plan while virtually addressing a public rally at Kishoreganj Old Stadium in the district.
In the function, financial assistance was provided to a number of the families of those who were martyred and injured in the student-people mass uprising.
Tarique Rahman said the family card will be given against the name of the mother or housewife in a family and this programme will initially start in the rural areas and then expanded gradually to the urban areas. Under the card, every family would be provided with a certain amount of required food items every month, he added.
This assistance is provided, every family gets relief and can increase their family savings to some extent. If we continue it for some years, I believe that the people of the rural families would be solvent,” he said.
He said the main goals of BNP are to establish political rights of the people and simultaneously to attain economic emancipation of the people.
“We want to make the people of Bangladesh self-reliant economically,” said the BNP Acting Chairman.
He stressed the need for upholding the achievement attained through the mass uprising by building the country as per the public aspiration.
He said though the dictator was ousted, some ghosts of the dictator still remain in the country.
“Though the dictator has fallen, all the dangers are not over yet. There are still dangers ahead. We have to be careful about this,” he said.
Tarique expressed that this interim government would take steps to establish the political rights of the people and fulfill public aspiration as the government struggled for these in the last 17 years.
He, however, asked the people to be alert so that any situation could not emerge where the dictator can hatch conspiracy afresh during the work of establishment of political rights of the people by the interim government.
“The ghosts of the dictator don’t sit idle, they continue their conspiracy. Every pro-democracy political party and every pro-democracy person has to be vigilant today,” he added.
The BNP leader stressed the need for unity to build the country and the nation.
“Only a government elected by the people is able to do such tasks. Because the elected government will have an obligation and accountability to the people,” he said.
He said the autocratic government tried to divide the nation to hold on to their power. But the BNP does not want division rather want unity in the nation.
Referring to those who received martyrdom and others who made sacrifices in the struggle to establish their voting rights, he said “Their sacrifice will be properly assessed when the government of the people is established,” he said.
“Today, if we have to honor the sacrifices of the martyrs and other victims, then we all have to be united, regardless of party affiliation and views. We should be united for the sake of this country and for the sake of the people of the country,” he added.
He said BNP will work to build Bangladesh in line with public aspiration, if it is able to go to power getting the public mandate in future.
Tarique announced he has no address (house) outside Bangladesh.
He said BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia earlier said she had no address outside the country. “Being the son of Khaleda Zia, today I would like to tell you that I don’t have any address outside Bangladesh. Bangladesh is my first address and Bangladesh is my last address. So, we will have all sorts of efforts for the welfare of the country and its people,” said the BNP acting chairman.
BNP Kishoreganj district unit president Shariful Alam presided over the function.