Getting people's honour is great achievement for a politician: PM

Prime Minister and Leader of the House Sheikh Hasina today said it's a great achievement for any politician to take his or her place through the work and get due honour from the people.

"The man is mortal and death is unenviable ... all will have to die, but taking place through the work and getting due honour from the people are a great achievement for a politician," she said.

The Leader of the House made the remarks while participating in a discussion on the obituary reference on the 16 eminent persons who died since the prorogation of the 18th session of the 10th Jatiya Sangsad.

They included former fisheries and livestock minister Mohammad Sayedul Haque, ex-parliament member Golam Mostafa Ahmed, former deputy speaker Akhtar Hamid Siddiqui, ex-Chittagong mayor ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury and Dhaka North City Corporation Mayor Annisul Huq.

Paying rich tributes to them, the prime minister said these leaders earned this honour and dignity from the people through their honesty, sincerity and integrity.

Sheikh Hasina said Sayedul Huq was elected parliament member for five times and ran the ministry with utmost efficiency and honesty.

"He made huge contributions to the development of the country especially in the fisheries and livestock sector," the premier said.

The premier said a country is developed if the politicians have honesty, sincerity and integrity. "I had got such a minister among Sayedul Huq who did politics with utmost honesty and integrity," she said.

Sayedul Huq was elected in the 2001 election which was a challenge for the Awami League. "At that time, the Awami League was defeated in a planned way.

Despite the allout efforts of the then caretaker government to defeat him, he (Huq) became victorious as he got complete public support."

The prime minister said Golam Mostafa Ahmed, who was elected from Sundarganj in Gaibandha, was a popular leader at the grassroots level.

"He performed his responsibility as the general secretary of the Sundarganj Awami League for 32 years very sincerely and he was a good writer, poet, littérateur and social worker," she said.

The Leader of the House also paid her homage to Mohiuddin Chowdhury and Annisul Huq and prayed for eternal peace of the departed souls.