Pabna, Nov 04 (V7N) – National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener and Opposition Chief Whip Nahid Islam has said the government must take responsibility if what he described as fascist elements have infiltrated the ongoing garment workers’ movement.
He also blamed the government’s failure to take timely initiatives for allowing the workers’ protests over wage demands to escalate.
Nahid made the remarks while responding to questions from journalists at the premises of the Pabna District Shilpakala Academy on Tuesday afternoon.
Criticising the government’s performance, he alleged that it had failed on several fronts during its first eight months in office, including maintaining law and order and implementing its election manifesto.
He said ordinary people were increasingly frustrated by repeated increases in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices and other economic pressures.
“The people have lost confidence in this government. People must take to the streets against the government's failures and disorder. We will continue our movement to hold this government accountable,” he said.
Describing garment workers’ demand for higher wages as legitimate, Nahid said the government should have held discussions with them and taken timely steps to address their concerns.
He said the NCP would stand by workers in support of their legitimate demands. He also questioned why the BNP was not supporting the workers’ current demands, although similar wage-increase movements had previously been considered justified.
Nahid further alleged that the government would be responsible if elements seeking to destabilise the country became involved in the workers’ movement.
He accused the authorities of using intelligence agencies against opposition parties while showing insufficient initiative to bring to justice people he described as enemies of the country who had fled to India.
Criticising the BNP, the NCP convener alleged that the party was providing shelter and support to Awami League members across the country. He also claimed that fertiliser dealerships had been awarded to BNP members and their supporters, while others had been excluded.
He further alleged that funds allocated for the Family Card programme were being misused to benefit party activists.
Regarding the Ganges water-sharing agreement, Nahid blamed the government's failure for the lack of progress and said the NCP would launch a street movement in December demanding Bangladesh's fair share of the river's water.
He also said the government could seek the NCP's assistance if it failed to manage the garment workers' movement.
“If the government cannot control the garment workers' movement, it can ask us. We know how to organise movements and manage them,” he said.
On the upcoming local government elections, Nahid said the NCP was part of an alliance with Jamaat-e-Islami but would contest the local government polls independently.
He warned that the government would have to take responsibility if the situation in the country deteriorated in December. He said the NCP would remain active on the streets throughout the month, continuing its movement for public rights and national interests.
Later, NCP leaders attended an exchange meeting at the auditorium of the Pabna District Shilpakala Academy to review the party's organisational progress and discuss preparations for the upcoming local government elections. Nahid Islam addressed the meeting as the chief guest.
Special guests included NCP Joint Convener Ali Ahsan Junaid, Joint Member Secretary SM Saif Mostafiz, Organising Secretary Imran Emon and National Volunteer Force Convener Mahin Sarkar, among others.
END/MSR/SMA/
