Dhaka, Feb 6 (
bdnews24.com) — BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia has said Muhammad Yunus has been the victim of the government's political vendetta and urged all to remain alert about its 'pernicious campaign'.
"The controversy unleashed over Grameen Bank and Prof Muhammad Yunus is the manifestation of political meanness. It'll only harm the microfinance organisation, depriving the underprivileged people, and women," she said in a statement on Sunday.
In the statement, undersigned by her press secretary Maruf Kamal, Khaleda said, "The government has long been involved in undermining a personality like Prof Yunus of international repute in a planned way."
"…it has become clear to all that the recent move to remove him [Yunus] as the managing director of Grameen Bank is the effort to bring down the curtain of the conspiracy against the Nobel laureate," Khaleda said, voicing her deep concern over the incident.
She continued: The 'unethical and discourteous' behaviour towards Yunus reflects some government high-ups' sheer jealousy against him and lack of knowledge about his contributions.
Referring to the role of Grameen Bank in changing the lots of poor people both at home and abroad, Khaleda said, "The organisation [Grameen Bank] has been in a constant effort to improve the state of the poor people, particularly of the womenfolk … organisations like Grameen Bank has been replicated in Africa, South America and even in the USA to alleviate poverty."
"But it's so unfortunate that the present prime minister [Sheikh Hasina], whenever she gets any chance, undermines the role of Grameen Bank and other microfinance institutions through her sweeping comments that do not match her position," observed Khaleda, also a former prime minister.
She alleged that the government had neither left any room for justice in the country nor had it been able to protect the name and fame of any respectable citizen.
The BNP chief said, "Grameen Bank is a non-government organisation with government stake in it. Although the chairman of the organisation is nominated by the government, it is virtually a self-governed organisation under the direct supervision of its board of directors."
"Its female members own 95 percent of its shares while the government has a scanty 3.5 percent stake. So, there is no reasonable ground to consider it as a government-owned organisation. The bid to label Grameen as a scheduled bank only reflects the ignorance about related rules and regulations," Khaleda added.
"The issue, I believe, should be kept above party politics and personal meanness," she said and called upon all irrespective of political affiliations and beliefs to unite against the heinous attempt to malign respected personalities.
She also hoped that the people of good conscience, teachers, employees, peasants, labourers, professionals, political activists and the members of Grameen Bank in particular, would unitedly foil the conspiracy against Yunus as well as Grameen Bank.
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