People will vote AL to power again

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said she believes that the people will vote Awami League to power again in the next general election for the sake of continuation of the development trend.

"I believe that the people of Bangladesh will again make Awami League victorious by voting in favour of boat in the next election and let the development trend continue," she said at the first meeting of the party's national election

see page 11 col 1steering committee, reports UNB.

The AL has been able to retain popularity despite remaining in power for two consecutive terms, the PM said, terming it a rare instance.

She said the party did not lose public confidence and trust as it is working for development of the countrymen and its benefit reached villages and grassroots.

Sources said the meeting decided to form election conducting committees for upazilas and also polling stations.

The possible number of voting centres will be around 40,000 for the upcoming national election and there are a total of 492 upazilas in the country. The district unit of the party will monitor the formation and function of the committees.

If the district unit president contests the national polls, the senior vice-president will monitor the committees.

Earlier, the ruling party had formed 137-member national election steering committee for the 11th national polls with AL chief Hasina as its chairman, party's advisory council member HT Imam as co-chairman and general secretary Obaidul Quader as member secretary.

The national election steering committee is comprised of members of the AL Central Working Committee and Advisory Council and presidents and general secretaries of the party's seven front organisations.

Apparently pointing at any possible extra-constitutional intervention, AL chief Hasina, in her introductory speech at the meeting, held at the Gono Bhaban, said there is no benefit in waiting with that hope as no such tendency is there anymore.

She said there was frantic effort to foil the 2014 national election, but people re-elected the AL by casting votes and resisting BNP-Jamaat.

The PM further noted that the BNP resorted to falsehood over its secretary general's visit to the US as it claimed the UN secretary general invited him.

It was learnt that Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir met the UN secretary general, though the latter was in Ghana to attend the funeral of Kofi Anan, mentioned Hasina.

She said an assistant secretary general of the United Nations confirmed that the UN chief did not invite Fakhrul, rather the BNP leaders sought his appointment.