Every village will be developed like a town if AL voted to power again: PM Sheikh Hasina

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said if her party voted to power again every village will be developed like a town.

Sheikh Hasina, also the President of Awami League, asked the public representatives to win the trust and confidence of the people by serving them properly.

The premier was addressing a programme arranged on the premises of her official residence Ganabhaban on Thursday, marking the National Local Government Day-2023 for the first time in the country.

She said, “You are the people from the grassroots, elected representatives with the votes of the people, and responsible to serve the people. So, working for the welfare of the people is the responsibility for you, me and all (public representatives). You should go forward gaining the trust and confidence of the people by working for and serving them. You will have to gain the trust and confidence so that the people will again vote for you” .

During the speech , she also asked the public representatives of the local government bodies to stand against drug abuse, terrorism and militancy.

“You will have to stand against drug abuse, terrorism and militancy. You will have to pay special attention so that none can engage in drug, terrorism and militancy,” she said.

Hasina said the government is constructing 560 model mosques and providing money for renovating temples. The government will do whatever is necessary for the development of mosques, temples, churches and pagodas, she said.
She also asked the public representatives to pay attention so that the community clinics render proper services, and create awareness, the overseas job seekers are not deceived by the middlemen and rather they can avail loans from the banks particularly the Probashi Kallyan Bank which offers them loans with collaterals.

The PM asked the public representatives to work for food production and encourage the people not to leave a single inch of land uncultivated.

“We’ll have to take the country forward using whatever resources we have. I would like to request everyone to work accordingly,” she said.

PM Hasina said her government has been able to work for the development of the country and continue the democratic trend, maintaining a stable situation after forming the government for three consecutive terms since 2009. “This is why we’ve been able to develop the country upto the village-level,” she said.

Mentioning that today’s development success is the outcome of the long hard work, the PM asked the people, including local public representatives to be alert so that none can destroy the success anymore as the achievement of the 1996-2001 regime was marred.

“The progress of Bangladesh, what was obtained from 2009 to 2023, should be continued,” she said, expressing her firm conviction to take the country to a more dignified position on the global stage by building ‘Smart Bangladesh’ and implementing the SDGs 2030.

LGRD and Cooperatives Minister Md Tazul Islam presided over the event, while State Minister for LGRD and Cooperatives Swapan Bhattacharjee and Local Government Secretary Muhammad Ibrahim spoke on the occasion.

Mayors of five city corporations, chairmen of Zila Parishads, Upazila Parishads, mayors of two municipalities; two councilors from Dhaka south and north city corporations; chairmen of eight union parishads, spoke at the event, among local public representatives.

Some 8,000 public representatives of the country’s 5,474 local government bodies—12 city corporations, 61 zila parishads, 329 municipalities, 495 upazila parishads and 4,577 union parishads—joined the event organised by the Local Government Division.