9-member dialogue team finalised

Awami league yesterday decided to nominate a nine-member team headed by its acting president Zillur Rahman to join the government-sponsored dialogue.

Briefing newsmen after emerging from a two-hour meeting with a recess for Magreb prayer, acting general secretary of Awami League Syed Ashraful Islam said some resolutions were adopted at the meeting in which the party demanded holding of the Jatiya Sangsad poll first after quickly lifting emergency, taking immediate measures for containing price hike of essentials, initiating trial of the war criminals and a halt to mass arrest across the country.

He disclosed that Awami League would take part in the government-sponsored dialogue under the leadership of party's acting president Zillur Rahman. Names of Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, Amir Hossain Amu, Abdur Razzak, Tofail Ahmed, Suranjit Sengupta, Matia Chowdhury, Ataur Rahman Khan Kaiser and Syed Ashraful Islam would represent the party at the talks, Syed Ashraf added.

Awami League also called upon the government to lift the state of emergency at the quickest possible time to pave the way for creating an environment for holding of a free, fair, neutral, transparent and credible Jatiya Sangsad (Parliament) election first.

The call came from an emergency meeting of Awami League Central Working Committee (ALCWC), the highest policy-making body of the party, held at party president Sheikh Hasina's political office at Dhanmondi.

Senior member of the party presidium Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury chaired the meeting, which was attended by those members of the ALCWC who were now staying in Dhaka.

Talking to newsmen Syed Ashraf said the time for the mass signature campaign throughout the country has been extended by a fortnight as the party thinks the mass arrest started immediately after announcement of the programme. Earlier, the Awami League's mass signature campaign to press for realisation of its six-point demand was scheduled to be carried out across the country from June 7 to June 30.

He said at the meeting, the tour programme of party central leaders who will take part in the extended meetings of different district units was finalised for strengthening and increasing party's organisational activities at the grassroots level.

Expressing satisfaction over the temporary release of Awami League president Sheikh Hasina and offering prayers to Allah for her release, the party also called upon the government to ensure her unconditional release and instructed the leaders and workers to carry forward the six-point movement further till the realisation of the demands.

At the meeting, the programmes for observance of the Awami League's 59th founding anniversary on June 23 also was finalised which include placing of wreaths on the portrait of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at Bangabandhu Bhaban at 8 in the morning and holding of a discussion meeting in the afternoon. Besides, a delegation of AL central leaders will place wreaths at the mazar of Bangabandhu at his birthplace at Tungipara in Gopalganj district.

Syed Ashraf said his party would give formal reaction to the new national budget at party's Dhanmondi office at 3 pm today. While reviewing the budget, he said the ALCWC meeting observed that prices of essential commodities including rice, edible oil, onion and potatoes registered a rise in the market after announcement of the budget which is a cause of concern to the people in general and to the party in particular.  

Terming it a bad practice to place the national budget bypassing the Jatiya Sangsad, Awami League urged the government to refrain from it. Awami League also was of the view that the rate of inflation and price hike of essentials would be increased due to the deficit of Taka 30,500 crore as proposed in the new national budget.

Besides, the party had also criticised the budgetary allocation of 20 per cent dearness allowances exclusively for government employees without suggesting any salary and wage hike for non-government teachers and workers. It demanded salary and wage hike for the non-government teachers and workers as well as restoration of the trade union rights of the industrial workers.

The ALCWC meeting also appealed to the democratic and secular forces to forge unity at this crucial juncture of the nation.