‘Don't put cart before horse’: Mirza Abbas says local govt polls to benefit those who bear malice

Reiterating the BNP's stance on holding national elections first, the party's Standing Committee member Mirza Abbas has said those calling for local government elections have "malicious and conspiratorial" intent. 

"The issue of local government elections has come up. We don't want to see local elections before the parliamentary elections. Your intentions are malicious and conspiratorial. If local elections are held, it would benefit many [political parties]. That is because in villages and towns, they have no ground beneath their feet. That's why they want to hold local elections to secure some ground. You can't put the cart before the horse," Abbas said this afternoon at a public rally organised by the district BNP unit in the Khanpur area of Narayanganj.

The elections will take place, the people will vote and whoever gets the most votes will become prime minister, Abbas said, adding, "We're not saying they must vote for the BNP, but they have already assumed that the BNP will come to power once elections are held because they know the BNP is a popular party. To destroy this popularity, a faction of people have come out in the field today, wanting to tarnish BNP's reputation."

"They say that those who talk about elections are supposedly enemies of the nation. If that is the case, then don't hold elections, just like [former prime minister Sheikh] Hasina. You remain in power and see if you can stay there… We want democracy. We want the right to vote."

Blaming syndicates for rising commodity prices, the former minister said, "People are suffering due to the rising prices of essential goods. This needs to be made bearable. I want to say to the government, you've been busy with reforms and creating confusion. I don't know what reforms have been made, but why not address the reforms that are possible right in front of you?" 

Urging the government to bring market syndicates to book, he said, "They manipulated the market and kept the prices high. As long as no action is taken against them, prices will not come down."