Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday said Bangladesh will be governed as per the ideological speech of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman that he had delivered on his historic Homecoming Day in 1972.

“The Father of the Nation on his Homecoming Day on January 10, 1972 delivered his policymaking speech and ideological directives for governing the country. We’ve to go ahead with that ideology; we’ve to advance the country with that. And the pace of development in Bangladesh must not be stalled, no matter what,” she said.

Sheikh Hasina said this while addressing a discussion meeting here, marking the historic Homecoming Day of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Awami League arranged the discussion at its Bangabandhu Avenue central office.

AL President Sheikh Hasina presided over the discussion, joining it from her official residence Ganobhaban.

She said Awami League has been in power for three consecutive terms elected by people. “Had we not been elected by people then we wouldn’t be able to come to power for three consecutive terms and complete 13 years [in power]. This is the reality. This reality has to be accepted,” she said.

If AL remains in power, the wheels of development will be moving, Hasina said, adding that those who had made Bangladesh a place of killers, war criminals and corruption, there will be no place for them in this land. “This (message) has to be clearly conveyed to them.” 

The PM reaffirmed her stance that no one will be allowed to play ducks and drakes with the rights of people.

Recalling the tumultuous days during the rule of Father of the Nation after independence, she said some people had written columns criticising the government of Bangabandhu, or created the volatile situation in the country in the name of a movement or scientific socialism. “What did they actually want to do? That’s my question but I didn't get the answer yet,” she said.

Coming down heavily on a section of people, she said, it is the habit of a class of people to criticise all good works of Awami League.

“Those who never wanted the Independence of the country, those who had run the country taking killers and war criminals with them and wanted to destroy the development of Bangladesh, some of their ghosts are still in society and in the political arena. They’re exercising these unnecessary whims,” she said.

Regarding the allegation of wasting money in the name of development activities, she said if thousands of crores of Taka had been wasted in the name of development, then how Bangladesh became the role model of development in the world.

READ: Bangabandhu remembered on Homecoming Day

Briefly describing various success stories of the country in the last 13 years, Hasina said many developed and rich countries are not providing coronavirus vaccines free of cost.

“We’re providing vaccines completely free of cost. So far, 13 crore people have been vaccinated.” 

She renewed her call to all to take vaccines to remain protected from the deadly virus. “And there’s no shortage of vaccines.”

Hasina put emphasis on maintaining the pace of development gained during the last 13 years under the Awami League government.

“We’ve to materialise the dream of the Father of the Nation to make a hunger- and poverty-free developed and prosperous Bangladesh. We’ve to take that vow,” she said.

AL publicity and publication secretary Dr Abdus Sobhan Golap conducted the discussion.

AL presidium members Matia Chowdhury, Jahangir Kabir Nanak, Abdur Rahman and AHM Khairuzzaman Liton, AL joint secretaries Dr Dipu Moni, Dr Hassan Mahmud and AFM Bahauddin Nasim, AL central committee member Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, AL organising secretary Mirza Azam, Dhaka South AL president Abu Ahmed Mannafi and Dhaka North AL president Sheikh Bazlur Rahman also spoke at the programme.

READ: PM releases stamp marking Bangabandhu’s Homecoming Day

On January 10, 1972, Bangabandhu returned to independent Bangladesh via London and New Delhi after 290 days of captivity in a Pakistan jail.