Prioritising law and order, ending corruption: BNP chief Tarique’s ‘plan’ to fix Bangladesh

He says if these two areas were properly addressed, many of the country’s other problems would largely fall into place

Law and order and the control of corruption are the two priorities BNP Chairman Tarique Rahman wants to put at the centre of his political “plan”.

He outlined this on Saturday afternoon while speaking with the winners of the “Amar Bhabnay Bangladesh”, a national reel-making competition.

Tarique said the first thing that must be ensured is law and order, so that what people say and what leaders say can be done in an environment where everyone feels safe on the streets.

Ensuring public safety, he said, was essential.

He added that corruption had to be tackled in one way or another.

“There are different kinds of corruption at different levels, and we have to try to deal with them all,” he said.

“If we can address these two things properly, many of the other problems will largely get resolved. That is my plan.”

The discussion was held at Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed Park in Gulshan, where Tarique was accompanied by his daughter Zaima Rahman.

The competition winners raised different questions, and he responded to them openly.

They asked who would receive family cards and whether widowed women would be included.

In reply, Tarique said single mothers and women facing hardship, including those abandoned by their husbands, would be covered.

He said Bangladesh currently had 138 social safety projects under the government, but they were not working properly.

“Resources are being wasted. One person gets three forms of support while another gets none,” he said.

“We want to organise this through a family card system and make it universal.”

By way of example, he said the wives of farmers, van pullers and office workers would all be entitled to receive the card.