President Hamid calls for national unity for prosperous Bangladesh in final parliament address

The president’s second and last term is set to end in April

President Md Abdul Hamid has called for national unity to have a prosperous Bangladesh for the next generations in his final address to parliament with the next general election a year away.

Hamid’s second and last tenure as president is set to end in April, 10 months before the parliamentary election. Parliament will elect a new president after the end of his term.

In his address to the opening session of 2023 on Thursday, Hamid greeted people on New Year and described the steps taken by the government to maintain Bangladesh’s course on the path towards development amid a global crisis.

"We are passing through an important juncture in national life. 2022 was a challenging year for us. The whole world is going through a difficult time. While we have been able to successfully deal with the coronavirus pandemic and maintain economic momentum, the war between Russia and Ukraine has slowed our progress.”

Still, the government was able to raise the budget for 2022-23 fiscal year to Tk 6.78 trillion, a 14 percent rise from the revised budget of the previous financial year, he said.

Mentioning the dream of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to build a developed Bangladesh, Hamid said, “It is our sacred duty to present a safe, happy, beautiful, developed and prosperous Bangladesh to the next generation.”

The president urged the MPs to put public interest above everything else.

“The nation must be more united to build a society free from exploitation by rooting out corruption, terrorism,, drugs and militancy.”