BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Friday asked the government to explain how the money from the foreign currency reserves was spent on Payra Seaport.
Speaking at a discussion, he also alleged that the government has devastated the country's economy through plundering.
“You (PM) have insisted that the money from the reserves was spent on Payra Seaport. We want to know how the money was spent, by whom it was spent and how the money from reserves have gone,” the BNP leader said.
Jatiyatabadi Muktijoddha Dal arranged the programme at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity (DRU), demanding the restoration of the caretaker government to oversee the next polls and the unconditional release of BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.
Earlier on Thursday, the prime minister virtually inaugurated some development projects, including capital dredging at Payra, aiming to equip it with better facilities for smooth operations.
Speaking at the programme, the PM said, “Many may wonder where the reserves money went. Money from forex reserves went to Payra port, procuring food for the people, fertiliser, and meeting the daily needs of people… No one can chew up that money. That is (forex reserves) for the people. We are using that for import and other necessary purposes.”
Criticising the prime minister for her remarks that money from reserves went to Payra Seaport, Fakhrul said the reserves money is not meant for the construction of a port.
He said the money from the reserves is supposed to be used to pay bills for imported goods and repay the foreign loans.
The BNP leader said the government is now in a very difficult situation as the reverses are depleting fast. “The government used to brag about having reserves of $42 billion. So where has the money from the reserves gone?”
He opposed the the PM’s remark that no one had chewed the money from the reserves, saying, “You didn’t chew it, but swallowed it. You’ve swallowed the entire economy of Bangladesh.”
Fakhrul said the current government’s only work is to loot public money. “They’re eating up everything in every sector. They (govt ) have ruined Bangladesh. If Bangladesh cannot be saved from the hands of Awami League, its existence will be at stake.”
Referring to the expert opinions, he said Payra Seaport will not be economically viable as it lacks the required navigability for ships to come to the port. “They’ve now taken a project of capital dredging for looting more money. They’re depleting the country’s resources in this way.”
The BNP leader said there is no alternative for their party to carrying out the movement to restore democracy and people’s voting rights.
Fakhrul urged the government to quit and dissolve parliament by handing over power to a non-party caretaker government, paving the way for holding a credible election by forming a new election commission.
Or else, the BNP leader warned that the country’s people will ensure the government’s fall by creating a mass uprising.
