PM Tarique opts for personal vehicle, his motorcade now reduced to 4 considering traffic

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has decided to use his personal vehicle instead of the government-provided one, in what appears to be a symbolic move aimed at promoting austerity and setting a new tone for public office.

BNP Media Cell member Atikur Rahman Rumon shared the decisions while talking to reporters on Wednesday.

According to the decisions, he said, the Prime Minister will use his own vehicle, driver, and personally purchased fuel.

"He (Tarique) is not using the government vehicle allocated for the Prime Minister. In today's schedule, he travelled to Savar, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar and later to the Secretariat in his own Toyota vehicle," Rumon said.

"Considering traffic congestion, the Prime Minister has ordered that the size of his motorcade be reduced. Previously, the motorcade had 13–14 vehicles; now it has been reduced to four," he added.

Rumon said the Prime Minister is using a car without a flag. However, the national flag will be used during state programmes or visits by foreign guests.

He also said the Prime Minister has decided to hold cabinet meetings at the Secretariat from now on to reduce traffic disruption caused by ministers travelling to the Prime Minister's Office.

The Prime Minister has also instructed the authorities to stop the practice of deploying uniformed police along both sides of roads during his movement in the capital, Rumon said.

In the morning, Tarique Rahman travelled from his Gulshan residence to the National Memorial in Savar and paid homage to the martyrs of the Liberation War.

From Savar, he went to Sher-e-Bangla Nagar and placed wreaths at the graves of former president Ziaur Rahman and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia.

Members of the full cabinet accompanied him at both places.

He later went to the Secretariat and joined the first cabinet meeting.