United News of Bangladesh

A 15-member delegation of senior officials from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) left for China on Tuesday on a week-long visit to participate in a training programme. The delegation departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at around 2:00pm on a China Eastern Airlines flight. The programme, being organised with the support of the Chinese government and the Chinese Embassy in Dhaka, will be held in Kunming, the capital of China’s Yunnan Province. Prime Minister’s Additional Press Secretary Atikur Rahman Rumon, who is a member of the delegation, said the training programme will continue until June 8. The delegation includes NGO Affairs Bureau Director General Mohammed Jakaria, Prime Minister’s Additional Press Secretary Atikur Rahman Rumon, Private Secretary-1 Mohammad Mamun Shibly, Private Secretary-2 Mehedul Islam, PMO directors Monirul Islam Patwari, Anwar Ul Halim, Mohammad Nasir Uddin Sarwar and Md Mahbubur Rahman. Other members include Protocol Officer-1 Md Ujjal Hossain, Assignment Officer-2 SM Parvez, Research Officer Abdus Sattar Patwari, Tariq Hasan, Private Secretary to Prime Minister’s Adviser Ismail Zabihullah, and officials Julia Moin, Jesmin Akter and Mohammad Jabbar. Earlier, speaking at a reception programme in Dhaka on Monday night ahead of the visit, Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen said high-level exchanges and cooperation between Bangladesh and China strengthened further in recent times. He said the training programme would play an important role in enhancing mutual relations and exchanging experiences between the two countries. The ambassador expressed hope that the participating officials would be able to apply the knowledge gained from China’s development and modernisation experience to Bangladesh’s development efforts after completing the programme.

Leaders of the Protestant Church exchanged Easter greetings with Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Sunday. The greeting exchange was held at the Cabinet Division office of the Prime Minister at the Bangladesh Secretariat around 11:45am, said Prime Minister’s Deputy Press Secretary Jahidul Islam Rony. Easter, one of the most important festivals in Christianity, marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ and is observed by millions around the world. It symbolises hope, renewal and triumph over despair, with prayers, community gatherings and acts of charity forming key parts of the celebrations.

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Saturday urged the officials and staff of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) to work sincerely to change the fate of the country’s people. “The people of Bangladesh are looking up to the government with great expectations. You are also part of this government,” he said while addressing officials and staff of the PMO at a meeting. The prime minister mentioned that PMO officials and staff are part of the administration and said the government will perform well only if they extend full cooperation. “We consider this country our first and last address. So we must work ourselves to change the destiny of our people.” Tarique Rahman arrived at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tejgaon at 10:15am and held his first meeting with officials and staff of the PMO since assuming office. The meeting was held at the Shapla Hall of the PMO in Tejgaon in the morning. Prime Minister’s advisers Mirza Abbas, Ismail Zabiullah, Humayun Kabir, Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir, Brig Gen (retd) ATM Shamsul Islam and Zahedur Rahman were present, along with Principal Secretary ABM Abdus Sattar, according to a press release issued by the PMO. Principal Secretary ABM Abdus Sattar delivered the welcome address and Director General of the PMO Mohammad Abdul Wadud Chowdhury gave a presentation on the structure and functions of the office. Addressing the meeting, Tarique said every political party has a manifesto and noted that through a fair election, people gave their mandate in favour of implementing the manifesto of the BNP.  “So, we must work in line with the commitments made in the manifesto,” he said. The Prime Minister sought the cooperation of government officials and employees in implementing the manifesto pledges, particularly in the health and education sectors, women’s education, employment generation, sports and other priority areas. Tarique stressed the need to ensure the security of citizens so that they feel safe. “If we all work together, we will certainly be able to achieve this goal,” he said. He also expressed hope that officials and employees would extend full support in eliminating corruption from the country. At the meeting, the prime minister instructed officials to maintain confidentiality where necessary in the interest of the state. He also emphasised strict adherence to government rules and regulations to build a disciplined and orderly nation. Heads of departments and agencies under the PMO, along with its officials and staff members, were present at the meeting. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman attended office on Saturday, although it was a public holiday Last Saturday, he worked at the PMO in Tejgaon for the first time.

Detectives of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested former Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary and also former National Bureau of Revenue (NBR) Chairman Nojibur Rahman from Ramna area of Dhaka on Sunday night, said authorities. Rezaul Karim Mallik, additional deputy commissioner (ADC-DB) of the DMP confirmed the matter to media. Read: Ex-AL lawmaker Shahidul Islam arrested: DB He informed that the arrestee will be produced before a Dhaka court on Monday. Nojibur served as the PMO principal secretary and NBR chairman during the rule of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Read more: DB arrests ex-food minister Sadhan Chandra from Dhaka’s Bhatara

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday (July 31, 2024) likened the recent violence in the country as ‘almost a terrorist attack’ aimed at creating a situation like what had happened in Sri Lanka to oust her government.“It was not a movement at all, and at one stage it almost into a terrorist attack,” she said while Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma called on her at her official residence Ganabhaban. Lives lost during the anti-quota violence will never come back: PM HasinaPM’s Press Secretary M Nayeemul Islam Khan briefed reporters after the call on.He quoted the PM as telling the envoy said that the anarchists actually tried to create a situation like what had happened in Sri Lanka to topple her government.“Actually they (the anarchists) have planned to create Sri Lanka type violence and oust the government,” she said. PM Hasina visits Suhrawardy Hospital to check on violence victims Hasina expressed sorrow for the loss of lives and destruction of properties in the carnage centering the student movement for reformation of quota in public services.Indian HC Verma expressed condolence for the loss of lives during the recent violence.He welcomed the normalcy that steadily is being restored, and the gradual resumption of economic activities in Bangladesh, according to the press secretary. Govt to take foreign technical assistance for judicial probe committee: PMVerma said that Bangladesh is the closest neighbour of India. It always gives support to the Bangladesh government and its people for implementation of Dhaka’s Vision of a progressive and prosperous country.He said that the successful visit of PM Hasina to India produced substantive outcomes, consolidated the past achievements and created a blue print for the future cooperation.“And based on the two countries national development visions, Vision 2041 for Bangladesh and Vision 2047 India, both countries entered into a new era of cooperation,” he said.In this cooperation there will be digital, green, joint development of satellite and new areas of cooperation like blue economy, oceanography and fintech.“That means future oriented partnership is based on our people’s shared aspirations for the future,” Verma said. PM’s Private Industry and Investment Adviser Salman Fazlur Rahman and Ambassador-at-Large Mohammad Ziauddin were present.

- Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday (July 24, 2024) invited Malaysia to install full manufacturing facilities for their Perodua cars in Bangladesh. She said this when outgoing Malaysian High Commissioner Haznah Md. Hashim called on her at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Prime Minister’s Press Secretary M Nayeemul Islam Khan briefed reporters after the call on. At the meeting, the envoy mentioned that the local PHP Motors is assembling Perodua cars here. China agreed to provide Bangladesh with assistance equivalent to $2bn across 4 packages: PM Hasina PHP Motors, a concern of PHP Family, has tied up with Perodua, a top Malaysian automobile brand, to assemble their cars and SUVs in Bangladesh and sell them in the local market. During the meeting, both the Prime Minister and the Malaysian envoy also discused the longstanding and continuing relationship between the two countries since the government of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. PM’s Press Secretary also said that speaking on the issue of the current situation, the envoy said she has confidence in the Prime Minister’s ability to restore normalcy. “You’re handing the situation well and the matter is purely Bangladesh’s domestic affairs,” PM’s Press Secretary quoted the Malaysian envoy as saying. The high commissioner said that Malaysian business entities’ cumulative investment rose to USD 5 billion in Bangladesh – mainly propelled by the two telecommunication companies, Robi and Edotco Bangladesh as they reinvested their profits here. Explore new markets for Bangladesh products: PM to exporters She mentioned that a good number of Malaysian students are studying in agricultural universities, medical colleges and other institutions in Bangladesh. To this end, the high commissioner extended gratitude to the premier for it. Highlighting their health faculties, the envoy said many Malaysian hospitals are comparable to those in Singapore considering the services offered and lower costs. “Bangladeshis can avail the health facilities there as more than 70 of the physicians in Singapore are from Malaysia,” she added. Ambassador-at-Large Mohammad Ziauddin was present among others during the meeting.

Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport’s third terminal will have its soft opening on October 7. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the new terminal. Air Vice Marshal Muhammad Mafidur Rahman, chairman of Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), said this during a press conference on Tuesday (August 08, 2023) noon at the under-construction third terminal. Read: 12 boarding bridges will be operational when Dhaka Airport’s 3rd Terminal partially opens this Oct: CAAB “We were informed yesterday (August 7) by the Prime Minister’s office (PMO) that the premier will inaugurate the third terminal at a soft opening on October 7,” the CAAB chief said. However, he said, passengers will be able to fully use the third terminal by the end of 2024. Read: Groundhandling contract for Terminal 3 will go to Japan: CAAB chairman “We want to complete 90 percent of the third terminal project before October 7, and we are optimistic that the work will be finished ahead of schedule,” added the CAAB chairman.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday (July 19, 2023) said the government is trying to bring back the money siphoned off by BNP leaders to different countries. “The money of many BNP leaders remains frozen (in foreign banks). We’ve been trying to bring these back gradually,” she said. Hasina, also president of Bangladesh Awami League (AL), was addressing a meeting of the AL-led 14-party alliance held at her official residence Ganabhaban in the evening. Also read: Denmark keen to invest in offshore wind energy in Bangladesh: Envoy Criticising the family of BNP leader Khaleda Zia for ‘their corruption’, she said the World Bank stopped financing during the BNP regime due to corruption in the road sector. The PM said the corruption committed by Khaleda Zia’s two sons Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Koko got revealed even before the foreigners and an FBI agent testified against Tarique in a money laundering case. She said the government was able to return Tk 40 crore from the amount of money they (Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Koko) laundered to foreign countries. “But the problem is that bringing back the money from the countries where they deposited is a difficult matter. The countries don’t want to release the money,” she added. Also read: Need to transform education system to build Smart Bangladesh: PM Hasina tells educators Focusing on her government’s success, the prime minister said Bangladesh has significantly advanced in every sector since 2009 during the regime of her government. “We can at least claim that Bangladesh has changed a lot in the last 14 and a half years. You can definitely realize it as well,” she said. Hasina said her government has successfully brought the poverty rate down to 18.6 percent now from 41 percent in 2006, while the extreme poverty rate to 5.7 percent from 25.1 percent. She said the government has been able to boost the production of foods including crops, fish, meat and vegetable, as well as provided free semi-pucca houses to 600,000 landless families and reached electricity facility to every house by raising power generation capacity significantly. Also read: Govt is always with you: PM Hasina tells businesspeople “We’ve achieved the electricity generation capacity to 25,000 megawatts within the 14 and a half years,” she said. The PM said there is no shortage of rice and other crops in Bangladesh. Noting that the government is setting up 100 special economic zones to generate employment, the PM said the unemployment rate came down to only 3 percent in the country. Also read: US visa policy to supplement govt commitment to hold free election: Uzra Zeya tells PM She said the government continues its steps to create entrepreneurs by providing different stimulus packages and training to the youth to bring down the unemployment rate further. “We’ve taken and implemented massive works not only for the infrastructural development of Bangladesh but also for its socio-economic upliftment,” she said. PM Hasina said Bangladesh today is considered as a role model for development throughout the world. Also read: Staying away from corruption can make possible the impossible: PM Hasina tells govt officials

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday (June 5, 2023) said the Awami League government has established the rule of law in the country, ending the culture of lawlessness that existed during the rule of BNP. The premier made these remarks when the newly elected leaders of Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association paid a courtesy call on her at her official residence Ganabhaban. PM’s Deputy Press Secretary Hasan Jahid Tusher briefed reporters after the meeting. She congratulated the newly elected leaders of the Supreme Court Bar Association. She said BNP introduced the culture of forced disappearance, killings and lawlessness through the indemnity ordinance proclaimed after the assassination of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family members. Also Read: Plant trees to shield Bangladesh from climate change: PM Hasina Hasina, the eldest daughter of Bangabandhu, said did not have right to seek and get justice after the assassination of the Father of the Nation. “It was a gross violation of human rights. Today, we’ve been able to free the country from the phenomenon of not getting justice. The Awami League government always believes in justice,” she said. She said the AL government has made arrangements for people to get justice. “Our government has digitized the judicial system so that people can get justice in a short time without facing sufferings,” she said. The PM said her government has made it (trial proceedings) virtual during the Corona pandemic so that people can get justice in a short time, staying at home. Also Read: Volatile global situation likely to worsen further: PM Hasina tells parliament Noting that the people are suffering due to electricity amid the ongoing heat wave, she said, “We’ve trying out best and taking necessary measures in this regard.” Hasina said Bangladesh has witnessed impressive development thanks to the continuation of democracy for the last 14 and half years in the country. She said Bangladesh has graduated to a developing country due to dedicated efforts of the Awami League government. “We’ve been working to make Bangladesh a developed and prosperous country,” the PM said. Also Read: PM Hasina slams critics and vows to implement the budget for FY23-24 Law Minister Anisul Huq and AL advisory council member and senior lawyer Yusuf Hossain Humayun were present at the meeting. Among the newly elected leaders of Supreme Court Bar Association, its President Advocate Md Momtaz Uddin Fakir, Secretary Abdun Noor Dulal, vice presidents Mohammad Ali Azzam and Jesmin Sultana, Treasurer Masud Alam Chowdhury, Sr. assistant secretaries A.B.M. Noor-A-Alam (Uzzal) and Mohammad Harun-ur-Rashid, members Mohiuddin Ahmed (Rudra), Shafique Raihan Shawon, Safayet Hossain (Sajeeb), Delowar Hossain, Mohammad Najmul Huda and Suvas Chandra Das were present. In March last, pro-Awami League lawyers panel Bangabandhu Awami Ainjibi Parishad won all the 14 posts of executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) in the annual election.

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has reiterated his stance for working with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take the existing bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Turkey to a new height. The re-elected president of Turkey said this during a telephone call to PM Hasina at around 11:15 pm on Wednesday (May 31, 2023). The two leaders exchanged greetings and spoke to each other for 10 minutes, according to a press release from PMO Press Wing. Hasina congratulated Erdogan on securing victory at the second round election, where the voter turnout rate was above 86 percent. Read more: What 5 more years of Erdogan's rule means for Turkey She expressed her happiness over her confidence that the people of Turkey would make the right choice, which was proved after the runoff election. PM Hasina reiterated that the People of Bangladesh would remain steadfast to stand by the brotherly people of Turkey at any time of need, as during the February 2023 earthquake. President Erdogan expressed his gratitude that the brotherly people of Bangladesh mentally joined the jubilant people of Turkey at his victory in the second round election. To this end, he thanked the people of Bangladesh and wished to further strengthen the ties between the two peoples. Read more: Turkey's Erdogan retains power, now faces challenges over the economy and earthquake recovery Hasina conveyed her best wishes to Erdogan and his family members and wished continued peace, progress, and prosperity through him to the people of Turkey.