Bangladesh News

The pro-Saifur faction of BNP will hold a meeting today to discuss party affairs and unification process while the pro-Khaleda faction decided to strengthen the party in the capital by dissolving the Dhaka city unit committee led by Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka.

Party leaders said the Saifur-Hafiz-led faction is also planning to build their strength in the changed situation and focus on the implementation of reforms in the constitution of the party to make it democratic.

Senior leaders of the party and its front organisations have been invited by Maj (retd) Hafiz, the standing committee-appointed acting secretary general of the Saifur faction, to attend the meeting at his Banani residence.

The much talked unification process of the party and ways to strengthen its efforts to reform the party would be discussed in the meeting, said leaders of the faction.

Lt Gen (retd) Mahbubur Rahman, a member BNP standing committee and also a pro-Saifur leader, told The Daily Star last night, “Senior leaders of the party will attend the meeting today to discuss party affairs.”

When asked, party chairperson’s adviser Maj Gen (retd) ZA Khan told The Daily Star that he received invitation from the acting secretary general to attend the meeting. “I hope party leaders and leaders of the front organisations will join the meeting,” he added.

On December 1, M Saifur Rahman, the acting chairperson appointed by the standing committee, spoke with Khandaker Delwar Hossain, the Khaleda Zia-appointed secretary general, over the phone and urged him to unite the party.

The pro-Saifur faction has once again given a proposal for unification recently to the pro-Khaleda faction of the party, a highly placed source at the party said yesterday.

According to the source, the proposal of the pro-Saifur faction stressed the need to unite the two factions under the leadership of Khaleda and Delwar. If necessary, Saifur and Hafiz would even relinquish their posts of acting president and secretary general.

Few weeks back, an initiative taken by Hafiz to hold a meeting of the standing committee and working committee of the party failed.

Hafiz also admitted to the media recently that his initiative had failed as the majority of standing committee and working committee members did not respond to his call.

In September last year after Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan and Ashraf Hossain were expelled from the party by Khaleda Zia, at least 100 leaders and former lawmakers of the party attended a meeting that was called by Bhuiyan.

Meanwhile, the pro-Khaleda faction is planning to announce a new committee led by Brig Gen (retd) Hannan Shah, an adviser to the chairperson, who is currently in jail custody, said the sources.

Party leaders claimed that party chairperson Khaleda Zia has recently directed the leaders to bring changes in the city unit of the party.

According to the plan, Hannan Shah might be appointed convenor of the city committee and names for other posts would be announced after Hannan Shah is released from jail.