Nefarious political elements still exist, says outgoing IGP Benazir Ahmed

Outgoing Inspector General of Police Benazir Ahmed says that nefarious political elements exist in Bangladesh and they are still out there.

“There exists a form of corrupt and nefarious politics in this country that has survived to this day,” the police chief said at a media conference to mark his retirement on Thursday.

"In this culture of corrupt politics, some people have unjustly and unreasonably pitted themselves against me. Today, I want to make it clear that I have no complaints, no hard feelings, against them."

Benazir said he hoped that even those who had propped themselves up in opposition to him had a good life going forward.

“This is because the Bangladesh of today is for everyone.”

Everyone is a part of our beloved Bangladesh and will move into the future together, he said.

All can come together, fulfilling their own responsibilities, whatever they may be, to create a state that works for the welfare of the people, Benazir said.

Bangladesh has faced a difficult road in reaching this stage, he noted, citing the increase in forex reserves from $18 billion to $49 billion, per capita income nearing $3,000, and progress in fighting poverty, disease, and deprivation. There were many political antics too, he said.

Benazir said he had worked as a policeman for 34 years, with 12 of those years spent in Dhaka.

He said he faced many challenges in those years and thanked Bangladesh’s citizens for their support.

One of the major challenges he saw during his career was making the country formalin free, he said in response to a question.

Thousands and thousands of tonnes of fish, fruit and vegetables were destroyed in the drive to remove formalin, he said.

Benazir described ridding the Sundarbans of pirates as another significant achievement. For 400 years, the area had been plagued by pirates, but the threat is now gone, he said, reports bdnews24.com.