Condemning Muhammad Yunus for his failure to maintain economic progress, his personal gains, and repressive rule, Awami League President and the countryโs longest-serving prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, elaborated on her success stories during a virtual discussion on Friday.
โI saw his speech today. Yunus was trying to make excuses for his misdeeds,โ she said. โHis remarks do not match the reality. He claimed that the economy was shattered when he came to power. How is it possible? Rather, our economy was in the strongest position.
โHe has destroyed the economy so much that he could not surpass my last budget worth Tk7,97,000 crore; rather, he reduced it. The budget does not go downwards.
โWhen I took office in 2009, Bangladeshโs budget was only Tk68,000 crore, and it rose to Tk7,97,000 crore. In South Asia, Bangladeshโs economy became the second, ninth in Asia, and 35th in the world,โ Sheikh Hasina said.
Bangladeshโs GDP was above 8% before the Covid-19 onslaught, global recession, Russia-Ukraine war, and sanctions slowed down economic activities. โDespite these challenges, we maintained a GDP average of 6.7%.
โThe Awami League increased per capita income to $2,794 from $445 in 2009.
โIn 2023, Bangladeshโs GDP rose to 7.4%. Due to extensive pro-people programmes, poverty was reduced to 18% and extreme poverty to 5%.”
She mentioned that in 2021, Bangladesh was recognised as a developing nation.
In that year, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution to graduate Bangladesh from the Least Developed Country (LDC) category, marking a significant milestone in its development progress. While officially becoming a developing nation is scheduled for 2026, the UN stated that the country would continue to enjoy LDC trade benefits until then.
โTo whom is he accountable?
โHe has destroyed the countryโs economy in the last eight years. Prices of essentials have gone beyond the peopleโs purchasing power. People are losing their jobs. They are unable to earn.
โDuring the Awami League tenure, a day labourer or rickshaw-puller could earn enough to arrange three meals for the family. Now they cannot earn money for one meal.
โWe reduced the poverty rate. He has increased it.โ
She said that the Awami League had never been a loan defaulter. โI allocated money for loan repayments.
โBut Yunus plundered the money. He and his gang members have become billionaires overnight. Their health has improved significantly. They are destroying the economy and making personal gains.
โThey unleash the stick-wielding mob terror if anyone criticises them.
โThis government is a total fraud. Yunus has no legitimacy. He has neither public mandate nor constitutional legitimacy. He has clung to power, defying the Constitution.
โYunus does not pay taxes. He had cases filed for tax evasion. He was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment for not paying profits to the workers. He has now become the head of the country.
โDuring my tenure, I launched 116 social safety net schemes, including allowances and stipends.
โI kept inflation below 9, but Yunus pushed it to 14, and it is still in double digits. But he has lied, saying that the prices of essentials were affordable. He is a very smart liar.โ
Sheikh Hasina also questioned why Yunus was refusing all the successes of the Awami League rule when the people knew everything.
They have destroyed Bangabandhu’s residence, which was turned into a museum, and the symbols of the Liberation War. They are removing Bangabandhu’s name and the name of the Father of the Nation from everywhere.
She said that many development projects were named after the Father of the Nation based on local people’s demands. It was a way of showing respect.
โBut Yunus claims that I named everything after my relatives, parents, and siblings. It is not true. The Father of the Nation brought us independence. You cannot wipe out the name of Bangabandhu no matter how hard you try.
โHistory takes its own course. Today, you are trying to wipe out the memory of Bangabandhu and remove his name from everywhere. Where do you stand? The name Bangladesh was given by Bangabandhu.
Mob King Yunus
โPeople were at peace,โ Sheikh Hasina said. โBut Bangladesh is destroyed due to a personโs greed for power.
โIn the name of anti-quota movement, they tried to unseat the governmentโฆtook attempts to embarrass the government, whereas I revoked the quota system [in 2018]. But they started killing people.
โIn the movement from July 7-14, the authorities did not obstruct them as long as they were peaceful. But on July 15, when they started the killingsโฆlooted and burned 460 police stations, and killed police members, ordinary people, studentsโฆ Who killed these students? Police did not use metal bullets.
โSince they killed the police, the on-duty police also have the right to self-defense. They lynched the police, not even sparing a pregnant police officer, killing ordinary people, numerous Awami League activists, and freedom fighters.
โThey claim this is mob justice. Where is the mob? These are some terrorists and criminals. It is already proven that they torched metro rail, the BTVโฆโ
Sheikh Hasina mentioned what Yunus said at the Clinton Global Initiative event in September, that it was a meticulously designed anarchy to grab power. He even clapped with a happy face after introducing the mastermind to the world.
โIt means there was no involvement of students and the public in the movement. It was staged to capture power and sell out the country.
โWe achieved our marine boundary. Yunus wants to allow setting up a military base in the Bay, sell out the country in the name of providing a humanitarian corridor, and sell out the Chittagong Port.
โThe country is burning in hell due to his greed for power. They were killing people one after another by lynching and using sharp weapons and sticks. No one has ever seen such brutality.
โEven the innocent cows were not spared. These animals were beaten to death.
โThey cut the tendons of Chhatra League activists and threw them from an 11-storey building [in Chittagong]. They were even watching to see whether they died.
โThe brutality of the killings after torture has not been seen in the past.
Sheikh Hasina said the interim government has filed cases against 4-5 lakh Awami League members. Over 1,37,000 are in prisons. At least 1,000 Awami League members have been killed. The injured are not getting treatment at hospitals.
Judges, doctors and teachers have been forced to resign. The courts have been politicised, she said.
Sheikh Hasina said: โHis speech was full of lies. Yunus has awarded impunity to the perpetrators of murders, arson and other crimes that have taken place since July 15. Donโt the families have the right to seek justice?โ
Many of the students have admitted that they killed the police and set fire to the metro rail and BTV buildings, she mentioned.
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