NCP sticks to reform agenda despite Jamaat alliance: Nahid
National Citizen Party (NCP) Convener Nahid Islam on Friday, January 30, said the party has not retreated from its own reform agenda despite joining the 11-party alliance led by Jamaat-e-Islami for the upcoming national elections.
“The 11-party alliance is an electoral alliance. We remain committed to the ideals we stood for from the beginning,” Nahid said.
He was speaking at the NCP’s election manifesto unveiling ceremony in Gulshan. “This alliance has been formed on the basis of minimum political consensus. Aligning with older parties does not mean we have stepped away from the idea of a new political settlement.”
Nahid said the NCP’s separate election manifesto reflects the party’s continued commitment to building an anti-fascist and discrimination-free Bangladesh.
“By announcing its own manifesto despite being part of a broader alliance, the party has demonstrated that while contesting elections together, alliance partners retain distinct political visions,” he said.
Referring to his speech at the Shaheed Minar on August 5, 2024, Nahid said the mass uprising against fascism and five decades of discrimination — from which the NCP emerged — remains the foundation of the party’s politics.
“Since forming the alliance, questions have been raised repeatedly. There has been criticism and debate, both for and against. But the struggle and demands for a new political settlement that we started with remain unchanged,” he said.
Nahid said that if elected, the NCP would work to implement its manifesto while remaining within the alliance. “Our effort will be to realise our reform demands through this alliance. That is why NCP has announced a separate manifesto, and Jamaat-e-Islami has also released its own.”
He also expressed optimism that despite missed opportunities in the past, significant reforms are still possible through a referendum.
Urging people to vote ‘Yes’, Nahid said, “We have missed many chances, but at this moment there are still strong possibilities. We have secured several reform commitments that can be implemented through a referendum during the election.”
The aspiration for a new political settlement, Nahid said, is a long-term struggle for the NCP and will have to be achieved through a sustained political journey.
Source: UNB