DHAKA, Oct 7: While Awami League (AL) President Sheikh Hasina is drumming up her campaign against what she called “massive rigging” in the October 1 general elections, party MPs-elect and others are asking her not to reject the people’s verdict and boycott parliament.
She is planning a cross-country tour to revamp the party and organize public opinion against the election results. Hasina also wants to prepare them for a prolonged agitation against the new government, headed by Begum Khaleda Zia, likely to be sworn in on Oct 10.
However, a newly-elected Awami League member of the parliament said: “We will take the oath and attend parliament session, but it will take some time.” The MP-elect said that the AL was a political party and cannot afford to reject the poll results.
Sheikh Hasina has already toned down her stance and asked her partymen to concentrate on the re-polling being held in 80 polling booths on Monday involving 16 seats.
Earlier, she had outrightly rejected the poll results and called for widespread agitation and boycott of the parliament.
Former US president Jimmy Carter, who visited Dhaka earlier in August, has requested Hasina Wajid not to boycott the parliament, says a press release issued here on Sunday.
Carter has also requested Khaleda Zia to make sure that the opposition in the parliament is able to discharge its constitutional role without any hindrance.
Meanwhile, in a joint statement, the leaders of 26 top chambers of commerce and industry and associations have expressed their “concern” over the non-cooperation movement announced by the Awami League after rejecting the poll results.
The business leaders, who also include some members of the AL, requested “all political parties to work together to create a congenial environment for investment after the free, fair and peaceful elections held on October 1.”
The signatories include the presidents of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), International Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh chapter (ICC-B), Bangladesh Jute Mills Association (BJMA), Foreign Investors’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters of Association (BGMEA), Bangladesh Textile Mills Association (BTMA), and American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham).
In addition, renowned teachers, writers, intellectuals and artistes have urged upon the Awami League leadership “not to boycott the newly-elected parliament and refrain from agitational politics”.
