Dhaka, Mar 23 (UNB) - Dr Kamal Hossain’s Gono Forum will form a human chain programme in the capital on April 1 to push for its 14-point demand for ensuring safe roads and restoration of discipline in the transport sector.

The programme which will be held in front of the Jatiya Press Club is also meant for registering the party’s protest against the government’s move to hike gas tariffs.

Gono Forum general secretary Mostafa Mohsin Montu announced the programme at a press conference at the Jatiya Press Club.

“We took to the streets demanding safe roads earlier when students waged a movement to this end. We’re also going to form a human chain from 3pm to 5pm in front of the Jatiya Press Club on April 1 with the same demand in line with the students and youths,” he said.

Through the programme, Montu said, they will also protest the fresh proposal for raising gas tariffs.

He urged the people of all walks of life, including students, to participate in the programme and make it a success.

Gono Forum’s 14 demands include, upgrading the transport sector-related laws and ensuring their proper enforcement, making the sector free from political influence, enhancing the skills of drivers through training, fixing specific wages and working hours for drivers, ensuring punishment to those transport owners and workers responsible for road accidents, introducing the new franchising bus service system, removing unfit vehicles from the streets, conducting continuous drives against fake and unskilled drivers and creating a specific lane for public transport and enhancing the quality of their services.

The party also demanded security on the roads in front of the public and private hospitals, installing footbridges and having speed-breakers on roads in front of educational institutions, stopping extortion in the transport sector, creating a fund with the supervision of a regulatory body for the victims of the road accidents and taking suggestions from experts and giving priority to people’s interests in constructing roads and bridges and working out transport strategies.

Dhaka, Mar 23 (UNB) – GM Quader, younger brother of Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad, was removed as the deputy leader of opposition in parliament on Saturday, a day after his ouster as party co-chairman.

“As the Jatiya Party chairman and leader of the opposition in parliament, I’m removing GM Quader from the post of deputy leader,” a media statement signed by Ershad said.

Ershad nominated his wife Raushon for the post and a proposal was also put forward to the Speaker to take necessary steps, the statement said.

The maverick former military strongman, known for frequently changing his decisions, sacked his brother from the party post on Friday.

“He has failed to run the party … and created divisions in it,” Ershad said of his brother in a statement. “He has been relieved of party’s organisational duty and the post of co-chairman in the interest of the organisation.”

But Quader will remain a presidium member of the party. Quader could not be reached for comments for this story.

Ershad had picked his brother to run the party in his absence on January 1, two days after the national election. He announced on January 4 that his party will be the main opposition in parliament and that his brother Quader will be the deputy leader of opposition.

Jatiya Party sources said influential leaders loyal to Raushon have been strongly opposing Ershad’s decision to choose his brother as his successor. They recently succeeded to convince Ershad to pick Raushon as his successor and make her the deputy leader of the house.

Raushon, the party’s senior co-chairman, was the opposition leader in 10th parliament.

Dhaka, Mar 23 (UNB) - BNP on Saturday alleged that Bangladesh has turned into a ‘failed state’ as the government ‘sold out itself’ to global superpowers.

“This government has been there in power illegally since it is not elected with people’s vote. They’ve already turned Bangladesh into a failed state,“ said BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.

Speaking at a token hunger strike programme, he further said this government is working with a motive to build Bangladesh as a subservient country dependent on others.

“They (govt) have already sold out themselves to superpowers. They (govt) and their leaders are working as service providers of the superpowers,” he said.

BNP Nawabganj and Dohar upazila units observed the one-hour token hunger strike from 1 pm to 2 pm on the ground floor of BNP’s Nayapaltan central office.

Fakhrul said the government has usurped power by using the state machinery and guns. “I don’t find any difference between them (govt) and the Pakistani occupation forces.”

He expressed his wonder that a ruling party leader, accused of raping a woman in Noakhali, secured bail for a year, though BNP’s thousands of leaders and activists are not getting bail in ‘false political’ cases.

About the growing road accidents in the country, the BNP leader said there are no now justice and the rule of law in the country while the administration has become ‘dysfunctional’.

“Many people are getting killed in road accidents every day. The incidents of crime have also marked a rise, but there’s no action to prevent those as virtually there’s no government in the country,” he observed.

Fakhrul said now there is no alternative to ensuring the release of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia from jail to protect the country and its people. “Let’s get united and free Khaleda Zia and democracy.”

Earlier at a discussion, the BNP leader alleged that the entire country has turned into a jail as the government is imprisoning its opponents as per its whim snatching their rights.

He alleged that the current government cannot tolerate alternative opinions as it does not have any respect for democracy. “They (govt) should directly say like North Korean leader Kim Jong that they believe in one-party rule and what they say will be the law. But they’re deceiving people by resorting one-party rule undercover of democracy.”

Jatiyatabadi Samajik Sangskritik Sangstha (Jasas) arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club in memory of poet Al Mahmud who passed away last month.

Recalling Al Mahmud’s contributions to the country and literature, he regretted that the government did not pay homage to the poet as it refrained from taking his dead body to Shaheed Minar. “I doubt whether they (govt) believe in the spirit of Ekushey and the 1971’s Liberation War.”

Dhaka, Mar 22 (UNB) – Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad on Friday relieved his younger brother GM Quader of the party's cochairman post and its organisational duty for his failure to run the organisation.

A press release, signed by Ershad, also said Jatiya Party parliamentary board will now decide whether he can remain in the post of Deputy Opposition Leader in Parliament.

The former military ruler apparently exposed his unpredictability once again with his fresh decision as he had declared barely two and a half months back that GM Quader would be the chairman of the party in his absence.

In a press release, on January 1, Ershad had said, “As Jatiya party’s founding chairman I would like to inform the party’s leaders, activists and supporters at all levels that current cochairman GM Quader would act as the Jatiya party chairman in absence of me.”

In today’s press release, he said he withdrew his pervious announcement considering the party’s current situation.

“As Quader has completely failed to run the party, the party activities have lost pace, he (Quader) has created divisions within the party. As the party senior leaders expressed their unwillingness to work under his leadership, he has been relieved of party’s organisational duty and the post of cochairman in the interest of the organisation,” Ershad said.

He, however, said Quader will remain as the Jatiya Party presidium member as usual.

Dhaka, Mar 22 (UNB) - Jatiya Oikyafront will form a human chain in the city on March 30 next to push for its various demands, including the annulment of gas-tariff hike proposal.

Leaders and activists of the alliance will form the human chain in front of the Jatiya Press Club at 11am.

Besides, Oikyafront will hold rallies and public herrings in different divisions and districts in April demanding reelection, cancellation of 11th parliamentary polls.

Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna announced the programmes at a press conference after a joint meeting of steering committee of the alliance at its Old Paltan office.

Manna said they will form the human chain also to register their protest against the government’s failure to ensure road safety, mismanagement in upazila polls, snatching students’ votes in Ducsu polls, destroying election system and limitless financial inequality and plundering by the government.

“We’ll also hold rallies or public hearings in all divisions and different districts in April to spread our movement across the country,” he said.

The Oikyafront leader said people did not go to cast their votes in the recent upazila polls as they lost their confidence in the election system after 'vote robbery' on December 29 in the national election.

Under the circumstances, he said their alliance has decided to continue its movement to realise their demand for a fresh national election. “We’ll wage a movement based on that demand, and will continue it until we get the victory.”

Manna said their meeting also chalked out a two-day programme to mark the Independence Day.

As part of the programmes, he said leaders and activists of Oikyafront will place wreaths at the National Mausoleum in Savar at 9am on March 26. 

The alliance will also will hold a discussion on March 31 at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal president ASM Abdur Rob, BNP standing committee member Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan, Gono Forum executive president Subrata Chowdhury and general secretary Mostafa Mohsin Montu were, among others, present.