‘Politics must serve people, not just win power’
Politics should focus on establishing people’s rights and ensuring their welfare rather than merely acquiring power, Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Minister Dr Abdul Moyeen Khan said on Friday.
He stressed the need to strengthen democracy from the grassroots level and ensure accountability of public representatives to make the democratic system more effective.
The minister made the remarks at a discussion with teachers of The Millennium University at his residence-cum-office in Gulshan, Dhaka, marking National Teachers’ Day 2026 on October 9.
Representatives of various non-governmental organisations (NGOs) also attended the meeting, where the website of the Khan Foundation was inaugurated.
Moyeen Khan said becoming a representative of the people was a great privilege and that he had been trying to practise politics based on these principles for nearly 35 years.
He said he had prioritised earning public acceptance rather than seeking votes by spending personal money or arranging lavish gatherings. While public representatives must remain accountable to the people, voters also have a responsibility to elect the right candidates, he added.
The minister said the practice of spending huge sums of money to win elections must change, stressing that politics could not follow the right path without a commitment to public service.
Describing local government as a cornerstone of democracy, he said democracy could not function effectively at the national level unless it was firmly established at the grassroots.
Reforming local government institutions, improving public service delivery and holding elections across five tiers of local government remain major challenges, he said.
He also stressed the need to ensure that voters could visit polling centres without fear and cast their ballots for candidates of their choice.
Advocating non-partisan local government elections, Moyeen Khan said the system could help reduce political divisions and hostility at the local level.
He added that political differences should not prevent people from working together for national development and public welfare.
At the meeting, Advocate Rokhsana Khandaker, chairperson of the boards of trustees of The Millennium University and the Khan Foundation, said NGOs needed to strengthen their institutional capacity and preserve their decision-making autonomy instead of relying entirely on donors.
She said declining funding had made it necessary for NGOs to mobilise local resources and strengthen cooperation between public and private institutions.
NGOs could expand their development activities and contribute more to community building by making effective use of local resources, including government-owned khas land and ponds, she added.
Among those attending the meeting were Professor Dr Abhinay Chandra Saha, vice-chancellor of The Millennium University, and Mahmuda Khatun, executive director of the Khan Foundation, along with university faculty members, NGO representatives and foundation officials and staff.
