BNP brings 19 new faces in leadership

The BNP has announced names of 21 leaders for its new National Executive Committee -- one organising secretary and 20 assistant organising secretaries.

Of them, 19 are new and young faces, said insiders.

BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Rizvi Ahmed announced, in the third phase, the names at a press briefing at the party's Nayapaltan central office yesterday.

With the announcement of the latest names, the BNP central committee is gradually taking shape.

However, names for other posts including the party's highest policymaking body -- Standing Committee -- have yet to be announced.

Col (retd) Anwarul Azim is the newly appointed organising secretary of the party's Comilla divisional unit. Earlier, names of the nine organising secretaries including two women were announced in the second phase.

Apart from these, names of 20 assistant organising secretaries, two in each of the party's 10 organisational divisions, have been announced.

Of them, Dhaka Divisional Assistant Organising Secretary Abdus Salam Azad and Rajshahi Divisional Assistant Organising Secretary Abdul Momin Talukder Khoka were holding the same post in the previous committee.

The 18 new assistant organising secretaries are Shahidul Islam Babul (Dhaka), Mahbuber Rahman Shamim and Abul Hashem Bakar (Chittagong), Shahin Shawkat (Rajshahi), Anindya Islam Anik and Joyanta Kumar Kunda (Khulna), Akan Kuddus Rahman and Mahbubul Haq Nannu (Barisal), Dildar Hossain Selim and Kalimuddin Milon (Rangpur) Shamsuzzaman Zaman, and Jahangir Alam (Rangpur), Mostak Ahmed and Abdul Awal Khan (Comilla), Shariful Alam and Wares Ali Mamun (Mymensingh) and Ali Newaz Khoiyam and Selimuzzaman Selim (Faridpur).

In the three phases, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia has so far appointed 40 leaders to the posts of secretary general, senior joint secretary general, treasurer, joint secretaries general, organising secretaries and assistant organising secretaries, exercising the power bestowed upon her by the party councillors at the Sixth National Council held on March 19.

Besides, Khaleda and her son Tarique Rahman have been elected as the party chairperson and the senior vice-chairman in the council.

Insiders said it was a very tough task for Khaleda to pick the names due to internal conflicts and also because 60 to 70 senior leaders were holding more then one posts.

According to the updated charter of the party, none of the party leaders can hold more than one post.

The insiders said all of the 21 leaders are dedicated to the party and loyal to Tarique Rahman.

Several BNP leaders have recently told The Daily Star that many are “lobbying hard” for the 19 posts of the standing committee and the executive committee. The executive committee may consist 750 party leaders, they said.