Yunus for peaceful, participatory polls

Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus yesterday said people want to see a peaceful parliamentary election with the participation of all political parties to help the country attain its full potential.“We want polls. We want a peaceful election. And we want an election with the participation of all political parties. Nobody will be able to deprive us of it since people are demanding the election,” he told a reception accorded to him at the auditorium of Institute of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh (IDEB) in the capital.The founder of the Grameen Bank wondered why people doubted whether the general election, due to be held later this year or early next year, would take place or not.“Why should there be such confusion [about the election] when the process to holding the polls is due to start within a month or two?” he asked.Muktijoddha Gonoparishad, a platform of freedom fighters, hosted the programme to honour Yunus on his being awarded the US Congressional Gold Medal. The US government had conferred the award on Yunus in April in recognition of his efforts toward combating global poverty.An organiser of the Liberation War in 1971, Yunus, then 31, went from door to door of the then US Congressmen to garner support for the Liberation War and help change American attitude towards the massacre in Bangladesh.The economist said the country has been divided politically at the moment. “Why should we be divided? We want unity to maintain consistency of development.”Bangladesh, said Yunus, was facing a huge crisis due to the political tension. “But we don’t want any political divide, tension or outburst. We want peace,” he mentioned.The future of the country could not be left to anybody’s wishes, and the fate of its 16 crore people could not be squandered due to a split in opinions, he noted.Gono Forum President Kamal Hossain said Prof Yunus had never been a controversial person. He has been made controversial by a spreading of lies about him without any reasons.

From right, Ishtiaq Aziz Ulfat, Dr Kamal Hossain, Sadek Ahmed Khan, Dr Muhammad Yunus, Maj Gen (retd) Ainunuddin and Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury at a reception accorded to the Nobel laureate by Muktijoddha Gonoparishad, a platform of freedom fighters, at Institute of Diploma Engineers, Bangladesh (IDEB) in the capital yesterday.

He urged people and freedom fighters to identify and resist those who have tried to humiliate individuals like Prof Yunus.Dr Zafrullah Chowdhury, founder of Gonoshasthaya Kendra, said it was unfortunate that the country could not honour Prof Yunus, who has been honoured by almost all nations.Asif Nazrul, a law professor at Dhaka University, said the microcredit pioneer was the biggest torchbearer of the Liberation War as he had been empowering women and helping people out of poverty and working day and night to ensure equal distribution of wealth.Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury, vice-chairman of the BNP, said he did not understand the essence of the debate about the achievements of Prof Yunus.Ishtiaq Aziz Ulfat, chairman of the Muktijoddha Gonoparishad, wondered how the ruling party could say that Prof Yunus had done nothing for the country when his idea of microcredit had lifted millions of poor people out of poverty.