Photo: Collected
Awami League General Secretary and the road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader on Monday (22 January) said the Jatiya Party (JaPa) would play the role of the main opposition in parliament. He was speaking at a press conference held at the Awami League president’s Dhanmondi office in Dhaka.
"The Jatiya Party, which received the second-highest number of seats in the general election, will serve as the primary opposition in the House. "Independent MPs will remain unchanged," he stated.
The incumbent party achieved a resounding victory in the 12th legislative election, taking 223 seats out of 299. The Jatiya Party won 11 seats, independent candidates won 62, while the Workers' Party of Bangladesh, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, and Bangladesh Kalyan Party each received one seat.
After winning 22 constituencies in the 11th general election, Hussain Muhammad Ershad's Jatiya Party decided to serve as the primary opposition in the House, despite having no representation in the Awami League-led grand alliance government.
At the press conference, the Awami League leader slammed the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), claiming that the party is spreading rumors about its involvement in anti-government operations both domestically and internationally.
While commodity prices are surging around the world, he claims that the BNP is portraying the issue as the onset of a famine in the country.
"The Awami League is deeply rooted in Bangladeshi soil, and its power comes from its people. "The 'bomb of words' will not be able to overthrow this government," Quader concluded.
Messenger/Sun Yath
