October 18, 2007	Thursday	Shawwal 5, 1428

DHAKA: Bangladesh’s army chief denied that he wanted to become president of the emergency-ruled country, rejecting ‘lurking’ questions about his political ambitions, a report said on Wednesday.

“Many questions are lurking in people’s minds, but time will give answers to all those questions... I have no desire to become president,” the private UNB agency quoted General Moeen U. Ahmed saying.

The powerful army chief, who was speaking in London on his way to the United States, was seen as instrumental in the cancellation of elections in January and introduction of a state of emergency.

Moeen has repeatedly said the military has no intention of grabbing power and often speaks on government plans. The head of the interim administration Fakhruddin Ahmed, meanwhile, is rarely quoted.

Moeen told reporters the state of emergency in January saved the country from ‘civil war’ after months of violence over vote-rigging allegations.

The army-backed caretaker government was installed on Jan 12 and has pledged to clean up Bangladesh politics before reinstating democracy.

It has launched a massive corruption crackdown that has seen at least 150 prominent figures detained.

The army chief said authorities had recovered $129 million in government money that had been illegally siphoned off and banked abroad.

Challenged on the sentencing of high-profile figures, including former ministers, on corruption charges, he said he was confident only those guilty of wrongdoing had been jailed.

“Can anyone find any honest person among those arrested and jailed?” he was quoted saying.

Moeen said the government’s priority was to restore democracy through free and fair elections.

Those arrested under the anti-graft crackdown include the country’s two most recent prime ministers and leaders of the two main political parties – Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Sheikh Hasina Wajed of the Awami League.

Since gaining independence in 1971, Bangladesh has been troubled by a string of military coups and counter coups.

Democracy was reinstated in 1991 but the subsequent years under alternate BNP and Awami League governments were marred by corruption on a massive scale which eventually led to January’s political crisis.

Despite Moeen’s assurances, many in Bangladesh fear manoeuvring within the military could result in another army takeover.—AFP