Staff Reporter:
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday pointing out the slogan of quota protesters, as they chanted, “Who are you? Who am I? Razakar. Razakar,” said it was “very regrettable,” and “they don’t feel ashamed to call themselves Razakars.”
“They didn’t know how the Pakistani occupation forces and Razakar Bahini had resorted to torture in the country—they didn’t see the inhuman torture and bodies lying on the roads. So, they don’t feel ashamed to call themselves Razakar,” she said.
The Premier said this while addressing the signing ceremony of Annual Performance Agreements (APAs) for the 2024-25 fiscal year at her office (PMO) yesterday.
She continued: “Our only target is to establish the spirit of the Liberation War. Lakhs of martyrs shed blood as lakhs of our mothers and sisters were violated. We won’t forget their contribution. We have to keep it in mind.”
The Prime Minister said her government had taken legal action against the war criminals who were in-volved in mass killing, looting, violation of women, setting fire on houses by forming Razakar Bahini and Peace Committee providing them firearms.
“Many of them were hanged following the trials and thus the repressed people got justice,” she said.
The premier said it was the most unfortunate to hear the slogan from the girls that they are Razakars de-spite the fact that the women were badly violated by the Razakars during the War of Liberation in 1971.
Sheikh Hasina said, “I felt sorry when I heard yesterday the students of Rokeya Hall calling themselves Razakars. Do they know what had taken place there on March 25, 1971? Some 300 girls were killed and 40 girls were raped and taken to the Pakistani camps.”
Referring to some gruesome incidents carried out by the Pakistani occupation forces in 1971, she said the female students didn’t see these oppressions on the streets in 1971.
“So, they don’t feel ashamed of calling themselves Razakars,” she added.
The premier said it is unfortunate that girls now chant such slogans.
“What country are we in? What spirit do they believe in? What lesson did they learn? What did they learn? It is my question,” she added.
Sheikh Hasina said the Liberation War is a matter of pride.
The countrymen left their houses and fought for the independence by risking their lives at a call of the Father of the Nation and achieved the victory, she said.
Even, they who were in Razakar, Al-Badr and Al-Shams Bahini unleashed inhuman torture on the peo-ple, she said, adding: “Don’t forget it”
“We have to march ahead with the spirit of the Liberation War after taking lesson from it,” she said.
“They, who were in power for 21 years after assassination of the Father of the Nation on August 15 in 1975 and afterwards eight years, what they could give the country?”, she questioned.
“They didn’t able to give anything,” she said.
But, she said the pro-liberation force Awami League have changed the country with massive develop-ments in the last 15 years after assuming power time and again.
“Bangladesh is now a changed country in the last 15 years. Bangladesh has reached a dignified position on the global stage,” she added.
The prime minister called upon all to play their parts to take the country ahead towards prosperity.
“Let’s take the country ahead. This Bangladesh will move ahead. We will move around the world keep-ing our heads high being a victorious nation through the Liberation War,” she said.
At the same function, the APA Award for FY 2022-23 and Integrity Award for FY 2023-24 were dis-tributed among the government offices for excellent performance in APA implementation and rendering services respectively.
At the signing ceremony, Sheikh Hasina gave a set of directives to the government officials that include going tough against corruption, ensuring transparency and accountability, bringing dynamism to the ad-ministrative activities and implementing the APAs to build a just, developed and prosperous Bangladesh.
She also asked all concerned to take preparation for facing a prolonged flood and ordered them to promptly complete the pending development projects, through which people will get benefits, and new projects can be taken.
She also called for taking measures to contain the price hike of essentials and increasing food production by bringing every inch of arable land under cultivation.
“Be vigilant so that none can increase the price of essential commodities through conspiracy,” she said.
The Prime Minister asked all to take rapid actions in case of finding any irregularities and corruption in the administration as the government is pursuing “zero tolerance policy” against corruption.
“Take proper actions wherever any irregularity is found . . .we announced zero tolerance against corrup-tion. I don’t believe that if we take action against corruption, the blame would be shifted to our govern-ment,” she said.
She opined that only a few individuals commit corruption, but many people are blamed for it.
“This is why stern actions will be taken against those who get involved in corruption. I don’t care what blame would be given to the government,” she said.
The Premier said they want to take steps to create scopes of the welfare of the country’s people by fur-ther rectifying society.
“Now we’ve taken steps. No more corruption will be tolerated,” she said.
She said the government wants to build a corruption-free society apart from paying attention to enhanc-ing the quality and skills of the government officials.
She asked every ministry to enhance monitoring on its subordinate offices up to field-level offices to ensure good governance. “The top side (of the administration) is very good. Some problems occur on the bottom side,” she added.
The Prime Minister asked the government officials not to be nervous or worried, seeing anything in the newspapers.
“There is nothing for you to be nervous or embarrassed by seeing what is written in the newspapers. Rather, you should check if there is any authenticity of it (the news). If it has no authenticity, dump it straight to the dustbin and you don’t even need to read it,” she said.
Public Administration Minister Farhad Hossain spoke on the occasion, while Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain delivered the welcome speech.
Labour and Employment Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain and Power Division Senior Secretary Md Habibur Rahman expressed their feelings at the function.
The government introduced the result-oriented APA method in the public administration in the 2014-2015 fiscal to enhance institutional efficiency and ensure transparency, accountability and optimum utili-zation of the resources.
