Prime minister and Awami League president Sheikh Hasina on Friday called upon the leaders and activists of Juba League to take the country forward for prosperity, being imbued with patriotism and dutifulness towards the country and its people.
‘I urge the youth folk that it is their duty to march the country ahead toward development and prosperity… the people of the country are now getting hope afresh to live a beautiful and dignified life due to the massive development carried out by the Awami League government. To take the efforts forward further, the youths are the most important stakeholders and they can build the country,’ she said.
The prime minister was addressing a youth grand rally as the chief guest marking the 50th founding anniversary of the Awami Juba League, the youth wing of the ruling AL, at the Suhrawardi Udyan in Dhaka.
The venue turned into a human see as the Juba League leaders and activists turned up in thousands since morning with colourful festoons, placards, national and party flags, portraits and pictures of the country’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, prime minister Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Fazlul Haque Mani. People were seen in thousands in the open places including the Ramna Park and roads surrounding the venue.
Referring to the remarks made by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman that he would build the war-ravaged country using its soil and population, the prime minister said, ‘It can be done if there is patriotism and dutifulness toward the country and its people and we have proved it.’
Taking part in person in the first formal rally since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic in 2020, she asked the Juba League leaders and activists to work in unison to materialise the dream of Sheikh Mujib to build the country as a developed and prosperous one and thus give the people an improved and beautiful life being imbued with Sheikh Mujib’s ideal.
The prime minister reminded the Juba League leaders and activists that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman established the organisation one year after the Liberation, on November 11, 1972, to build a war-ravaged country.
Awami League general secretary and road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader, senior AL leaders and former Juba League Chairmen, Amir Hossain Amu, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim and advocate Jahangir Kabir Nanak, among others, spoke on the occasion.
Juba League chairman Sheikh Fazle Shams Parash presided over the grand rally while Juba League general secretary Mainul Hossain Khan Nikhil moderated it.
Industries Minister Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun, Dhaka South City Corporation mayor Fazle Noor Taposh, former Juba League general secretaries Mirza Azam and Harunur Rashid were present on the dais, among others.
Senior AL leaders, central, district and city Juba League leaders and activists and eminent cultural personalities were present at the meeting.
On her arrival at the venue, the prime minister was received with flowers by the chairman and general secretary of the Juba League.
The prime minister inaugurated the golden jubilee anniversary grand rally of the Juba League by releasing pigeons and balloons.
She was later given a crest and two separate paintings of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and uttorio.
The prime minister also unveiled the cover of a special publication and opened the formal logo and website of the Jubo League marking its 50th anniversary.
A one-minute silence was observed in respect to the memory of the martyrs of August 15, 1975 and August 21 in 2004 alongside martyrs of all the democratic and progressive movements at the grand rally.
The anniversary programme started with a colourful cultural programme, where the party leaders and activists were seen waving small national and party flags.
Sheikh Hasina said that the world might be suffering from famine and food crisis as the entire world has been rattled with the economic meltdown stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war, sanctions and counter sanctions.
The prime minister asked the Juba League men to go to their native villages and take measures to bring all the lands, including abandoned ones, under cultivation so that Bangladesh never has to face any famine.
She reminded all again not to leave a single inch of land uncultivated to cut dependency on imports as the prices of goods have increased manifold across the globe due to the war.
The prime minister also asked the youths, particularly the Jubo League men, to work for building a corruption- militancy-and terrorism-free Bangladesh alongside preparing them as worthy citizens of the country with the knowledge of science and technology to compete the world.
In this connection, she said her government has been working tirelessly to create numerous scopes for the youths as they are the main driving force for the country’s development.
The premier said they are establishing 100 economic zones across the country mainly to generate employment for the youths and save the arable land stopping indiscriminate industrialisation, adding that they are also setting up high-tech parks and incubation centres to create scopes for the youths.
Describing briefly various measures taken by her government, the PM said that her government had established Karmasangsthan Bank and Probashi Kallyan Bank and raised start up so the youths can be entrepreneurs after taking loans from those organisations and can provide jobs to others instead of running after jobs.
She said that her government had opened various organisations including banks, insurances, mobile phones, television channels and radios in the private sector aimed at generating employment jobs for the youths.
