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"Nobody expects such comments from the leader of the opposition," she said as the newly elected office bearers of Institution of Diploma Engineers Bangladesh (IEDB) called on her at the Premier's Office.
Sheikh Hasina, however, added that Begum Zia's comments were not entirely surprising as her husband slain president Ziaur Rahman had mutilated the constitution with the stroke of his military bayonet after grabbing the state power.
She said after the August 15, 1975 assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the spirit and values of the Liberation War was erased from the constitution under martial law orders.
"(So) it is not unlikely that being his wife Begum Khaleda Zia will make such comments," she said.
Sheikh Hasina said her government rather de-stigmatized the constitution reinstalling into it the 1971 spirit under the 15th
amendment.
The Premier said the opposition leader made the comments as Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies like Jamaat-e- Islami appeared desperate to save war criminals, corrupt elements, "grenade attackers", and money launderers as the process was underway to expose them to justice.
"But their efforts will not succeed and the country will definitely witness the punishment of these elements," she said.
Science and Information & Communication Technology Minister Yafeash Osman, IDB president AKMA Hamid and general secretary Mohammad Shamsur Rahman also spoke on the occasion.
Sheikh Hasina recalled that the war criminals' trial had begun after the independence and many of them were imprisoned while several of them also were stripped off their citizenship.
But, she said, after grabbing the state power, Ziaur Rahman freed the war criminals under military orders and rehabilitated them in politics while subsequently some of them even got the scope to be ministers and lawmakers.
"Not only that, Ziaur Rahman awarded Bangabandhu's killers with diplomatic assignments abroad instead of exposing them to trial while his wife had made killer colonel Rashid as the opposition leader and another killer Huda as a parliament member," the premier recalled.
Welcoming the newly elected office-bearers of the Institution of Diploma Engineers, the Prime Minister said the diploma engineers have an important role to play for the country's infrastructure development.
She urged them to implement the government's development activities speedily, maintaining quality of work.
The aim of the government is to upgrade Bangladesh as a middle-income country by 2021. Therefore, the government has announced the 'Vision-2021,' she added.
Sheikh Hasina said, "We have taken the responsibility of running the country not for personal greed, but for welfare of the people."
Referring to the widespread corruption and plundering of public wealth during the BNP-Jamaat alliance government, she said the former prime minister and members of her family had whitened blacks money amassed through corruption.
Sheikh Hasina said Begum Zia's two sons received money from the state for their education. But what education did they get at the cost of public money, she questioned and referred to their alleged involvement in corruption, money laundering and grenade attack.
About the 2004 grenade attack in front of Awami League office, She said the role of intelligence agencies and the law enforcers at that time proves who were involved in that incident.
The Prime Minister said the prices of food items and other commodities have increased for some global reasons, including the
Middle East unrest. However, the government is procuring food from abroad at higher prices so that none suffers in the country for want of food, she added.
Sheikh Hasina stressed the need for increasing food production in the country and quick industrialization through setting up small and medial-scale industries.
She highlighted the government steps to build a "Digital Bangladesh" and said the people have already started enjoying its fruits.
She said the government has taken initiatives for employment generation through technical education. Skilled manpower is of big demand in foreign countries too, she added.
The Prime Minister listened to the problems of the diploma engineers and assured them of resolving those.
She said the last AL government in 1996 had taken a number of decisions to solve the problems of the diploma engineers, but the next BNP-Jamaat government did not implement those.
Ministers, PM's advisers, MPs and representatives of diploma engineers from across the country were present at the meeting.
Posted in: None expects "vulgar comments" from opposition leader: PM
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