Countdown to Mujib’s birth centenary celebration begins

Ruling Awami League president and prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Friday inaugurated the countdown to yearlong celebrations of the Mujib Year that begins on March 17 marking the birth centenary of country’s founding president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

The countdown began on Mujib’s homecoming day as he returned home from Pakistan captivity on January 10, 1972 after the country’s independence.

‘I begin the countdown,’ said Hasina at a grand ceremony at the National Parade Square at Tejgaon Airport, the place where Mujib first touched the soil of independent Bangladesh.

Accompanied by her younger sister Sheikh Rehana and son Sajeeb Wazed on the podium, Sheikh Hasina expected the people to take Bangladesh to a dignified position in the world by establishing ‘Sonar Bangladesh’ as dreamt by Sheikh Mujib.

‘He had handed over the torch of victory to us and we want to move forward with it,’ said Hasina.

Weeks after the December 16, 1971 Victory from the Pakistani occupation, Sheikh Mujib landed at then Dhaka International Airport at Tejgaon on a British Royal Air Force aircraft, a C-130J jet, that carried him from London en-route New Delhi.

A recently procured British C-130J aircraft, identical to the jet carrying Sheikh Mujib, was set on the airport’s tarmac while a laser light symbolised Mujib with a waving hand.

The light slowly moved to the red carpet descending from the aircraft amid a 21-gun salute to reconstruct the January 10, 1972 airport scene.

A contingent of army, navy and air force troops paid guard of honour in line with the event on that day 48 years ago.

The prime minister recalled that on that day, her mother, younger sister and she herself were following the radio commentary on the historic event from their house as they could not move to the scene with minor children including her son Joy and youngest brother Russell.

Dr Kamal Hossain, who accompanied Sheikh Mujib from Pakistan to Bangladesh, and national professor Anisuzzaman were present at Friday’s ceremony as witnesses to the 1972 event. There were also 2,000 guests and another 10,000 spectators.

Chairman of the Sheikh Mujib’s birth centenary celebration national implementation committee national professor Rafiqul Islam and its chief coordinator Kamal Abdul Naser handed over to the prime minister the Mujib Year logo at the ceremony.

The UNESCO will also celebrate the Mujib Year along with Bangladesh in line with the decision of its 40th General Assembly held at its headquarters in Paris.

Awami League and its fronts have chalked out many programmes across the country throughout the Mujib Year along with the government and the year-long event is expected to draw some major world leaders and global figures to Dhaka.

Several of them are expected to join the grand opening of the ‘Mujib Year’ in the capital on March 17, Sheikh Mujib’s birthday.

The figures included Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Yousef A Al-Othaimeen, former Indian president Pranab Mukherjee, former Indian national congress president Sonia Gandhi, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, Abu Dhabi’s crown prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, former UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, and former UNESCO director general Irina Bokova.

Bangladesh’s 77 missions abroad have taken 261 programmes, including introduction of ‘Bangabandhu Chair’ in a number of universities abroad as well as naming roads after ‘Bangabandhu’, foreign ministry officials said.

The government formed a National Committee and a National Implementation Committee to implement the Mujib Year events.

The celebration committee selected over 299 proposals of programmes, proposed by people at home and abroad, which will be observed across the ‘Mujib Year’.

Besides, Awami League and its front and associate organisations paid rich tributes to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman by placing wreaths at his portrait in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi on Friday on the occasion of the Homecoming Day of the leader.

On the occasion, prime minister Sheikh Hasina paid her homage at first at the portrait of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Then she stood in silence there for some time as a mark of profound respect to the memory of her father.

Flanked by senior leaders of the party, Sheikh Hasina, placed another wreath at the portrait of the Mujib as the party chief.

Awami League advisory council members Amir Hossain Amu, Tofail Ahmed, presidium members Matia Chowdhury, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim and Mohammed Nasim, Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader, joint general secretaries Mahbubul Alam Hanif, Dipu Moni, Hasan Mahmud, and AFM Bahauddin Nasim, organising secretary Ahmed Hossain, publication and publicity secretary Abdus Sobhan and deputy publication secretary Aminul Islam Amin were also present.

Later, the leaders of Awami League’s associate bodies, including Dhaka North and South units of AL, Juba League, Chhatra League, Swechchhasebak League, Krishak League, Sramik League, Mahila Awami League and Juba Mahila League placed wreaths separately at the portrait of Mujib.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net