Extend full support to interim govt: Dr Kamal

Gonoforum founder and its president emeritus Dr Kamal Hossain on Saturday urged the country’s political parties and people to extend their full cooperation to the interim government and give it a reasonable time to implement necessary state reforms.

"It is the moral responsibility of all political parties and citizens to provide their full cooperation to the current interim government and allow it a reasonable period of time to carry out reforms," he said while addressing the 7th National Council of Gonoforum at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh.

Dr Kamal said the state‍‍`s democratic institutions have become nearly dysfunctional due to blatant politicisation over the past 16 years.

He said an interim government, led by Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, was established with the aim of reforming these institutions and creating a conducive environment for fair elections.

He said a national consensus has been forged in support of the interim government to achieve its desired goals and effectively implement the necessary reforms. "This consensus must be upheld until the end. To ensure this, I believe a national dialogue involving all democratic political parties, individuals, and civil society is essential."

Dr Kamal also said the students and the mass people have once again demonstrated that this country belongs to its people, not to any dictator.

He called upon people to step forward and help build a humane Bangladesh, free from discrimination, upholding the spirit of the great Liberation War of 1971 and the student movement of 2024. "Let us unite in the struggle to build a new nation.”

Dr Kamal said Gonoforum has never compromised its principles during its 31-year political journey.

In the current circumstances, he expressed hope that the leaders and workers of Gonoforum would embark on a fresh journey, rising above divisions and misunderstandings within the party, through its national council.

Earlier, Shahidul Islam Bhuiyan, the father of Mohammad Farhanul Islam Bhuiyan, who was tragically killed during the July-August movement, inaugurated the Gonoforum council.

During the council, the new central committee of Gonoforum was formed, with Dr Kamal Hossain as Emeritus President, Mostafa Mohsin Montu as President, and Dr Mizanur Rahman as General Secretary.