Govt wants to shift RMG business to another country: Rizvi

Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, senior joint secretary general of BNP.

Dhaka, Nov 12: BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Sunday alleged the government is destroying the readymade garments (RMG) sector in Bangladesh as part of a plot to shift the business to another country.

Speaking at a virtual press briefing, he also slammed the government for letting loose law enforcers in suppressing a justified movement of the RMG workers and killing four labourers.

"The government is very cleverly implementing a blue-print of destroying the garment industry, the country’s largest sector for earning foreign currency. She (Sheikh Hasina) wants to create famine again like in 1974, and wants to destroy the country's economy,” the BNP leader said.

He also alleged that 150 garment factories were indefinitely shut on Saturday by the owners at the instigation of the government.

The BNP leader bemoaned that police who attacked the RMG workers filed cases accusing 11,000 RMG workers of staging demonstrations for their justified demands.

"People believe that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina wants a guarantee to stay in power illegally by shifting the RMG business to another country,” Rizvi said.

He said not only the political leaders and workers of the opposition parties but also the professional garment workers are not safe in the hands of the current fascist regime.  “Four garment workers have so far been killed by the police.”

The BNP leader said the government has again started indulging in enforced disappearance by using the plainclothes police to suppress the opposition’s ongoing movement.

He said the members of the Detective Branch of police are moving around like 'Nazi forces' in microbuses covered with black glass and picking up the pro-democratic forces. “Even ordinary people are not spared. They in the name of RAB-Police are also picking up the relatives, including parents, sons, children, brothers and sisters, of the democratic forces, and making them disappear.”

Rizvi called upon the law enforcers not to be opponents of the people who are carrying out a spontaneous movement to get back the right to vote.

He claimed that more than 365 BNP leaders and activists were arrested in different parts of the country in the last 24 hours as of 5 pm on Sunday.

The BNP leader claimed over 10,770 opposition leaders and followers have been arrested centring BNP’s Oct 28 grand rally and subsequent hartal and blockade programmes.

Meanwhile, BNP activists are instigating the garment workers, said Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan on Sunday. 

“Garment workers’ salary were increased earlier and the garment owners will solve the workers’ problem. But it has been seen that the BNP activists instigating the innocent workers ,” he said while talking to reporters at the secretariat.

Turning down the United Nations’ observation  that BNP leaders are being arrested due to political vengeance, Asaduzzaman said “They (BNP) killed a policeman and injured many policemen during the October 28 rally. The law enforcement agencies arrested those people involved in beating a female leader, attacking chief justice’s  residence  after checking video footages. Without asking their activists to refrain from carrying out attacks the BNP leaders declared hartal from the rally stage. Top leaders are also responsible for that.” 

Talking about the UN Chief's request to allow BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia go abroad for treatment after releasing her, the home minister said the government has taken steps to provide better treatment for her with the facility to bring physicians from abroad. 

Replying to a question about BNP’s participation in the next election, he said its’ BNP’s decision  whether they will take part in the election or not.

Referring to the arson attacks being carried out by the opposition activists during the ongoing blockade, Asaduzzaman, said the people of the country will resist them. - UNB