Defeated forces will be resisted on the streets if they try to create chaos, says State Minister Mir Helal in Chattogram

State Minister for Land and Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Barrister Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin has said that if the defeated forces of 1971 and the defeated forces of 2024 join together and try to create any kind of chaos in the country, they will be resisted on the streets.

He made the remarks on Saturday (14 November) afternoon as chief guest at a citizens' gathering in Chattogram marking two years in office of Chattogram City Corporation (CCC) administrator and former mayor Dr Shahadat Hossain. Dr Shahadat Hossain presided over the event.

Barrister Mir Helal said, 'If the defeated forces create small-scale chaos to try to corner a government elected by the people's direct vote, they are living in a fool's paradise. Alongside legal action by the administration, the leaders and activists of the BNP and its affiliated organisations are ready to confront these evil forces politically.'

Special guests at the event included Chattogram-9 MP Alhaj Abu Sufian and BCB director Israfil Khosru, among others.

Addressing party leaders and activists, the state minister said, 'The government's development and public welfare activities must be presented to the general public. Every leader and activist must regularly publicise the government's development work on their own Facebook and social media.' He urged them to present the government's positive initiatives and successes before the people through at least five posts a day.

He also said, 'Alongside the Chattogram City Corporation, the development activities of the Zila Parishad and the Chattogram Development Authority (CDA) also need wide publicity. These institutions are now led by qualified and dedicated people of the party. If their activities are presented to the public, people will know about the government's sincerity in implementing the promises made before the election.'

The state minister said development work worth about Tk 100 crore had been carried out at the mayor's initiative in CCC's Ward 1 (South Pahartali) and Ward 2 (Jalalabad), which fall within his parliamentary constituency, yet the work had not been properly publicised. In his words, if people are not told about work after it is done, anti-government propagandists are indirectly given the opportunity to claim that no development is taking place.

Praising Dr Shahadat Hossain's work, Mir Helal said, 'When intellect is combined with development work, it becomes more sustainable and people-friendly. Dr Shahadat Hossain is doing that kind of work. He has always represented the people, understood the sorrows of city dwellers, and stood beside people in political, social and professional fields. As mayor too, he has left a mark of success.'

Stressing coordinated initiatives to solve the city's problems, he said, 'It is not possible for any single institution to do everything alone for Chattogram's development. The City Corporation, Zila Parishad, CDA, MPs and political leaders and activists must work in coordination. Any problem of the city can be solved through united decisions, sitting with all concerned parties.'

On the problems of footpath hawkers and traffic congestion, he said, 'Freeing the footpaths is essential. But evicting hawkers and leaving them jobless is not the solution. Rehabilitation arrangements must be made for them at alternative places. That way hawkers' livelihoods will not be harmed, and city dwellers and those who come to the city for business will also benefit.'