Shafiqur warns against disparity in dev funds

Opposition Leader Dr Shafiqur Rahman on Friday warned the government against discriminating between ruling party and opposition lawmakers in development allocations, saying the opposition would respond forcefully if such practices continued.

“If the government discriminates in development spending, we will roar like a tiger if necessary,” he said while addressing an exchange meeting at the Netrokona Circuit House.

Dr Rahman alleged that opposition MPs were being denied development funds available to their ruling-party counterparts. “In some places, we see government MPs receiving allocations that opposition MPs are not. This cannot continue. We witnessed such discrimination in the past, but it will not be accepted anymore,” he said.

Turning to local development, the opposition leader said Netrokona had failed to realise its economic potential despite possessing valuable natural resources, including white clay deposits and silica sand. “Industries should have been established here long ago. Alongside government initiatives, local and outside investors should also come forward to set up factories,” he said.

On narcotics, Dr Rahman criticised the government’s anti-drug policy, arguing that the country should aim for complete eradication of the drug trade rather than merely trying to control it. He questioned the government’s commitment on the issue, alleging that a cabinet member had acknowledged knowing the routes through which drugs enter the country but had failed to stop the flow despite holding responsibility for the Home Ministry.

Referring to recent reports of alleged push-ins across the India-Bangladesh border, Dr Rahman said Bangladesh would resist any attempt to force people across the frontier. “Alongside the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), we will stand with our chests out. We will not surrender even an inch of our land, God willing,” he said.

Dr Rahman also took aim at successive governments for routinely claiming improvements in law and order after taking office. “Every government says the law and order situation has improved. But where has it improved? We do not see it,” he said.