Threat of remittance shutdown anti-national, inhumane: Rizvi

Zia Smriti Pathagar and Komol Kuri jointly organised the event. Photo: Courtesy

BNP acting secretary general and Prime Minister’s Political Adviser Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed on Friday described threats to halt remittances sent by expatriate Bangladeshis as extremely anti-national and inhumane.

He said such a move would threaten the livelihoods of millions of families and harm the national economy.

He made the remarks while addressing a prize-giving ceremony, discussion and cultural programme on the life and work of Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman at the TSC auditorium of Dhaka University in the afternoon. Zia Smriti Pathagar and Komol Kuri jointly organised the event.

Rizvi said remittances were one of the main driving forces of the national economy and supported the livelihoods of millions of families. Plotting to stop remittance flows for political purposes amounted to keeping people of the country hungry, he added.

Referring to recent disorder at an airport, Rizvi said people could protest against any injustice or mismanagement and hold press conferences to express their concerns. However, attacking officials performing their duties or other people and creating disorder could never be acceptable, he said.

He said those who were calling for anti-national programmes such as a “remittance shutdown” to protect people involved in such offences and gain political advantage had never prioritised national interests in their politics.

According to Rizvi, they had placed party interests above national interests at different times, including in 1971, 1986 and 2024. The BNP, on the other hand, had always put the interests of the people and the country first, he said.

Highlighting the importance of student politics and intellectual pursuits, the BNP leader said student politics was not limited to processions and slogans. Extracurricular activities, including essay competitions and cultural programmes at educational institutions, played an important role in developing students’ intellectual abilities and creativity, he added.

Recalling a saying attributed to Sufi saint Hasan Basri, Rizvi said taking care of one’s inner self also helped improve one’s outward appearance.

Quoting German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s words, “Suffering is the root of all greatness”, he told students that achieving something great required hardship and hard work.

He said the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal should become one of the leading centres of talent, knowledge and democratic practice.

Reflecting on the 2024 mass uprising led by students and the public, Rizvi said repeated failures of movements between 2010 and 2024 had created frustration, but the intense student movement in 2024 proved that pessimism wrong. The courage and pioneering role of young people had made the fall of the autocratic regime possible, he added.

The programme was chaired by Amanullah Aman, organising secretary of the Chhatra Dal central committee and convener of Komol Kuri. The organisation’s member secretary, Engineer Habibur Rahman, moderated the event.

Abdus Salam, administrator of Dhaka South City Corporation and a freedom fighter, addressed the programme as its inaugural speaker.

Special guests included Prime Minister’s Political Assistant Rashed Khan; BNP chairman’s adviser Baby Naznin; BNP MP and assistant secretary for self-reliance affairs Nilofer Chowdhury Moni; cultural affairs secretary Ashraf Uddin Ujjal; Chhatra Dal President Rakibul Islam Rakib; political analyst Rezaul Karim Rony; and Zia Smriti Pathagar General Secretary Zahir Dipti.