40% go below poverty line, 11.4% become rich during pandemic: Menon
Although the government does not acknowledge this growing inequality, this reality has pushed the country to a dangerous level, he observes
Around 40% people of the country have gone below the poverty line during the coronavirus period but, at the same time, the number of rich people is growing at a rate of 11.4%, said Bangladesh Workers' Party President Rashed Khan Menon.
This inequality has made the Libration War's declaration of bringing social justice, human dignity and equality pointless, he observed, adding that even though the government does not acknowledge this growing inequality, this reality has pushed the country to a dangerous level.
Menon was addressing a meeting of the Dhaka metropolitan committee of the Workers' Party through videoconferencing on Friday.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
The whole country will fall into the abyss of anarchy if the growing inequality cannot be contained, Menon said, adding, "In addition to facilitating development, the government's economic policy needs to be changed to eliminate inequality."
"The number of crimes including murder, robbery and rape has also increased during the pandemic. The social stability of the country cannot be maintained if this alarmingly growing trend cannot be stopped right now.
"We have to go back to the policy of equality from the neo-liberal economic policy. On the eve of golden jubilee of independence, the Workers' Party will highlight its commitment to establishing social justice and equality. Our party will create a movement, in the spirit of the war of liberation, to build a non-communal democratic modern Bangladesh."
Even though coronavirus infections are declining, the uncertainty over availability of vaccine has not gone away, he noted.
"Confusion over vaccine is growing as different people are making different statements on the issue. Main reasons behind this confusion are obstructing vaccine trials in the country, not supporting the innovations of the country's people, and above all putting business interests of certain quarters above the public interest.
"Not only containing the pandemic, the overall health care system of the country has to be restructured as per the interest of the people, bringing it out of corruption, looting and mismanagement," Menon added.
The meeting, chaired by Dhaka Metropolitan Workers' Party President Comrade Abul Hossain, decided to hold a red flag procession in Dhaka on 26 March, marking the golden jubilee of independence. The procession will start and end at Shapla Chattar at Matijheel in the capital, after offering wreaths to Shikha Chirantan at Suhrawardy Udyan.
General Secretary of the party Kishore Roy presented the report of Dhaka metropolis at the meeting.
Among others, the meeting was also addressed by Jahangir Alam Fazlu, Md Touhid, Anwarul Islam Tipu, Sadaqat Hossain Khan Babul, Shahana Ferdousi Lucky, Murshida Akhter, Shiwli Sikder and Tapas Kumar Roy.
Meanwhile, a meeting in memory of Workers' Party leaders Shafiuddin Ahmed, Abul Hossain, and Sheikh Sirajul Islam will be held on Saturday at the party's Topkhana Road office.
