PM apologises for people’s energy woes

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has said his government will present a longer-term plan in the coming parliamentary session to address Bangladesh’s persistent energy problems, while assuring the public that urgent measures are already under way to ease the current power and gas shortages.

Speaking at a cheque distribution and doa mahfil at the Mohakhali TNT field in Dhaka-17 on Saturday, Tarique apologised to people for the hardship caused by the ongoing energy crisis and said he hoped the gas shortage would improve significantly within the next few days.

“I sincerely apologise to the people for the suffering caused by the power crisis…I hope that, with Allah’s mercy, the gas crisis will ease considerably within the next few days,” he said.

The prime minister said the government was working on both immediate measures to tackle the shortages and longer-term steps to address structural weaknesses in the energy sector.

He said the government would place its broader strategy before parliament during its next session, stressing that rebuilding the country’s energy infrastructure would take time.

Tarique attributed the latest gas shortage largely to Bangladesh’s limited LNG storage and regasification capacity, as well as inadequate investment in domestic gas exploration.

“Gas was once a natural resource of Bangladesh. But over the past 17 years, the autocratic government did not explore new gas fields and instead left the entire sector dependent on foreign sources,” he said.

He said his government had moved to accelerate exploration for new gas reserves on Bangladeshi soil through Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation after taking office, with the objective of ensuring that the country’s gas resources remained under national control.

According to the prime minister, Bangladesh currently has to import a significant share of its gas, while its LNG infrastructure has remained heavily dependent on only two floating storage and regasification units.

He said arrangements for a third vessel had been made during the previous government but were later cancelled by the interim administration.

An accident involving one of the two existing vessels subsequently triggered the latest crisis, he added.

“The facilities for storing it through the vessels used to bring in gas were limited to only two vessels.

During the previous government, arrangements were made for another vessel, but the interim government later cancelled that initiative.

As a result, when an accident suddenly occurred involving one of the two existing vessels, the current gas crisis emerged,” he said.

Tarique said the technical problems had already been addressed and that the government was working to restore normal supplies as quickly as possible.

“We are working to free people from this hardship as quickly as possible,” he said.

The government is also working with China and other countries to accelerate the construction and deployment of another LNG vessel, he said.

Tarique added that he had spoken to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to seek assistance with Bangladesh’s gas requirements.

He urged people to remain patient, noting that specialised LNG vessels take considerable time to build and are manufactured by only a limited number of countries.

The prime minister also challenged political parties criticising the government over the power and gas shortages to present workable alternatives rather than simply raising allegations.

“If you have a better plan, bring it before parliament and the people. If that plan is realistic and can solve the problems within six months, we will implement it,” he said.

He called on political leaders to avoid creating confusion among the public and instead help people understand the difficulties facing the country’s energy sector and the possible ways forward.

Tarique acknowledged that people across the country were experiencing electricity shortages and said the government was taking steps to deal with both the immediate disruption and the underlying weaknesses that had accumulated over the years.

He also cautioned against expecting all the country’s longstanding problems to be resolved within a few months.

“Even a child takes around 15 to 18 months to learn to walk, even when holding someone’s hand. The age of your elected government is only six months,” he said.

Calling for an end to confrontational politics, Tarique urged political parties to focus on practical proposals for national development.

“Politics is not about confusing the people. A politician’s responsibility is to help people remain patient and show them the right path,” he said.

He said people wanted development, accountability and better living standards rather than street agitation and disorder.

“Bringing destruction to the streets and creating disorder is over. The people no longer support that kind of politics,” he said.

The prime minister said Bangladesh’s population of around 20 crore represented 40 crore hands that needed to be transformed into productive and skilled workers to improve the country’s economic prospects.

“What I received is not the most important thing; what I could give to this country and its people is what matters,” he said.

The event was organised by local BNP units and its associate organisations to mark the 81st birth anniversary of former prime minister and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.

Cheques were distributed among 682 distressed, helpless and sick people.

Tarique also paid tribute to Khaleda Zia and called for renewed efforts to build Bangladesh on the path of development and democracy.