BNP downplays Hasina’s call for national unity as ‘all talk’

Arafat Hasan of DOT
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has described Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s call for national unity as ‘all talk’ and revealed that it will “not take it into consideration.”
In her speech to the nation on Friday, Hasina had called for the nation to unite in order to help transform Bangladesh into a developed country.
Meanwhile, Fakhrul said yesterday, “There is no reason to accept her calls for national unity.”
“Was she able to keep her promises to us during the dialogue during the election? She wasn’t able to keep a single one. She said there would be no arrests or no new cases and that there would be a level-playing field. We did not see any of that.”
The BNP called on the nation to unite instead to demand for a free and fair election. The party has alleged rampant vote rigging in the election and has refused to take their oaths of parliament.
In her speech, the prime minister also requested BNP to take its seats in parliament, saying that they would not be judged for their lack of numbers.
“The things she said are all talk,” said Fakhrul. “She says them all the time. But we have rejected the results. There is no question about whether we will sit in parliament or take oaths.
“Nobody wants to tell the truth out of fear. The media is silent. Others are scared to speak freely,” Fakhrul added.