Expressing concern that large amounts of money and weapons may enter Bangladesh from neighbouring countries ahead of the upcoming national election, Shahjahan Chowdhury, a central working committee member of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, said that the election cannot be conducted with the people alone. He stated that officials in each constituency’s administration must be brought under their control so they act according to their instructions — including making arrests and filing cases.
He made these remarks on Saturday evening at a gathering of Jamaat’s electoral coordinators at the GEC Convention Centre in Chattogram city. Jamaat Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman attended the event as chief guest. However, Shahjahan Chowdhury was not on stage at the time of his speech.
Addressing a central leader, he said that primary school teachers must speak about the balance scale (the party symbol), as should all teachers at higher secondary schools, and that police should follow his lead. He added that the officer-in-charge (OC) will learn about his schedule each morning and provide him with protocol.
He claimed that he had assisted many people in the southern district even before his name was announced as a candidate. Due to his connection with advisers, 100 crore taka in Lohagara and another 100 crore in Satkania were given, with an additional 10 crore each for implementation in both areas. He emphasised understanding the complaints and needs of the people. He mentioned that a conference was held in his area with decoration workers, though such events had not taken place in many areas, where those individuals were not even considered voters.
He further said that elections are not solely dependent on organisation. Although organisation is fundamental, without giving space to the people, victory is difficult. He claimed that the previous fascist government tried to run the country only with Awami League loyalists and became detached from the public, leading to resignations and the eventual exile of its leaders amid mass movements.
The event was presided over by Jamaat-e-Islami Chattogram city Ameer Muhammad Nazrul Islam, with central assistant secretary general Muhammad Shahjahan, central working committee member Ahsanullah, Chattogram regional team members Muhammad Jafar Sadeq, Mostafizur Rahman, Amiruzzaman and Nurul Amin Chowdhury as special guests. Also present were Chattogram South district Ameer Anwarul Alam Chowdhury and North district Ameer Ala Uddin Sikder.
Additionally, city secretary Muhammad Nurul Amin, South district secretary Badrul Haque, North district secretary Abdul Jabbar, Cox’s Bazar district secretary Zahidur Islam, city assistant secretary Mohammad Ullah, organisational secretary Shamsuzzaman Helali, and nominated candidates from ২৩ constituencies across Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar and the three hilly districts were in attendance.
SS