I'm Ready To Make Any Sacrifice For People: PM

"The fate of the Bangalee nation must be changed and the dream of Bangbandhu must be fulfilled. So I am always ready to make any sacrifice for ameliorating the condition of the Bangalee nation and materializing dream of Bangabandhu by bringing smiles on the faces of the commoners," she said.

Mentioning that repeated attacks were made on her life in the past, she said no conspiracy will deter her from establishing a poverty and hunger-free 'Sonar Bangla' as dreamt by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

"I don't care about any conspiracy.... Only Allah can give and take life and I always believe in it and depends on Allah. I never bowed to anybody except Allah and I won't do so," she said.

The Prime Minister said this while addressing a discussion at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre here this afternoon.

Sheikh Hasina, the President of Bangladesh Awami League, chaired the discussion.

Bangladesh Awami League arranged the discussion as part of its 40-day proramme on the occasion of the National Mourning Day.

Deputy Leader of the House and senior Presidium Member of Awami League Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, AL Advisory Council Members Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed and Suranjit Sengupta, Presidium Members Begum Matia Chowdhury, Mohammad Nasim and Engineer Mosharraf Hossain, General Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam, eminent writer Syed Shamsul Haque, AL Joint Secretaries Jahangir Kabir Nanak and Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Organizing Secretaries Ahmed Hossain and AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Dhaka City AL President MA Aziz and General Secretary Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya took part in the discussion. Noted reciter Shimul Mustafa recited a poem on Bangabandhu at the function.

Earlier, a minute's silence was observed as a mark of profound respect to the memories of Father of the Nation Bangabndhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and other martyrs of the August 15 carnage, the four national leaders and those who embraced martyrdom in different movements of the country including the War of Liberation in 1971.

The Prime Minister said that after losing her father, mother, brothers and other near and dear ones, she has nothing to desire and attain. "My only desire is changing the fate of the nation for which my father, mother and brothers laid down their lives," she said.

She mentioned that with the August 15 massacre the whole nation was disgraced in front of the entire world. "Again I want to put the nation in a respectable position and bring smile on the faces of the common people of the country," she said.

In this connection, Sheikh Hasina said that the Father of the Nation dreamt of ensuring food, clothes, homes, healthcare and education for all through building a poverty and hunger-free nation.

"To fulfill that dream is the only aim of mine and I am working for that," she added.

Talking about the link of military dictator Ziaur Rahman with the August 15 massacre, the Prime Minister said that he gave shelter to the killers, destroyed the spirit of the Independence, rehabilitated the war criminals and destroyed the ideals on which the country was established.

"We tried the killers of August 15, 1975, started executing the verdict of the trial of war criminals and thus freed Bangladesh from stigma," she said.

Paying her rich tributes to Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Sheikh Hasina said the great leader had led the Bengali nation in making a homeland of their own. "To make this happen, Bangabandhu had to fight for long 24 years and suffer in jail making his life endangered," she added.

She said, after victory in 1971, Bengalis were proud of their valour and courage. But the conspirators stained the nation with the shame of a 'killing nation' making its head down before the world through carrying out the barbaric massacre in the dreadful night of August 15, 1975.

With the 15th August killing, she said, the nation not only lost its Father but also got the spirit of the liberation war and history of independence twisted and constitution of the country distorted.

Sheikh Hasina in an emotion-charged voice said how unfortunate it is that Bangabandhu was killed by the people of his own country although the great leader dedicated his entire life to achieve their political and economic emancipation. Recalling the memories of August 15, 1975, Sheikh Hasina, eldest daughter Bangabandhu, said, she along with her sister left Bangladesh only 15 days before that carnage.

After the barbaric killing, she said, military dictator Ziaur Rahman did not allow them to return home for long six years. Even she had to offer Fateha and Doa standing on road outside the Dhanmondi-32 building which was locked.

Dwelling on various achievements of her government, the Prime Minister also mentioned that it has been proved that the people of the country get something whenever the Awami League came to power. "Bangladesh is stepping forward and is already recognised as a lower middle income country," she said hoping that the country would be a developed one.

The Awami League chief urged the party leaders and workers to exploit every opportunity to fulfill the dream of Bangabandhu by establishing a hunger and poverty-free Sonar Bangla.