Mirza Fakhrul says he does politics by selling ancestral land

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday said that during the 2001 election, local women had sold eggs, chickens and vegetables and used their savings to make garlands for him.

“You elected me. I tried to work for you. I do politics by selling my ancestral land. The car I use in Dhaka is 20 years old. The car I arrived in today does not belong to me; it belongs to one of our supporters,” he said.

Mirza Fakhrul made the remarks while addressing an election street rally at Manabkalyan village in Salandar Union of Thakurgaon Sadar upazila on Thursday morning.

He said, “You know me well. You have known me since 1986, when I was the municipality chairman. From then until now, no one can point a finger at me and say that I have betrayed your trust. If you elect me by voting for the sheaf of paddy, I will be able to go to parliament and work for you. I am a man of action.”

Addressing voters, Mirza Fakhrul said they had been deprived of voting for many years. “In recent elections, I could not even speak; I only cried. An opportunity has now been created in the upcoming election. We must make use of this opportunity,” he said.

He added that significant development work was needed in Thakurgaon. “We do not want to survive on charity; we want to work. We must train and educate our mothers, sisters and the youth and engage them in productive work,” he said.