Garment exporters yesterday, in a rare move, brought out an impromptu procession on the capital’s roads in their desperate attempt to secure sufficient security for their industry increasingly being targeted by vested quarters.
About 500 members of BGMEA led by its President Md Atiqul Islam set off from the BGMEA headquarters to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s official residence yesterday evening. They chanted slogans “Save garment sector, save the country” as they marched through the streets.
The march, however, came to a halt as on-duty police officials, who have been put on high alert due to the exponential increase in violence, intercepted them at Farmgate, saying they had not been instructed to allow such a huge number of people to near the premier’s residence.
After receiving the green light, police let only 20 BGMEA representatives, both incumbent and former, go to Gono Bhaban, in a number of vehicles escorted by security personnel. Later, Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed, President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), and its Senior Vice President Monowara Hakim Ali and Vice President Helal Uddin also joined the delegation, which also comprised of Standard Group Managing Director Mosharraf Hussain, whose factory units in Gazipur came under attack from arsonists last week.
The businessmen told the prime minister that they do not want to be the victim of politics. If the current situation continues, they will have to shut their businesses.
In response, the prime minister assured the garment owners that the government would ensure adequate security for the sector and would bring the culprits behind the arsons and violence targeting garment factories to justice.
The delegation also urged the prime minister to arrange dialogues with the opposition party BNP to put an end to the political impasse sapping the economy greatly.
BGMEA submitted a memorandum to the prime minister.
Desperate to protect their sector from the wave of deadly violence and sabotage, the BGMEA leaders, along with more than 60 other garment exporters and the FBCCI leaders, set off for BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s office in Gulshan, straight from Gono Bhaban.
But they could not see her, as the BNP chief was not present at her party office at that time. The business leaders, however, left another memorandum with the opposition leader’s advisor Sabihuddin Ahmed.
“In the memorandum, we urged her to spare the garment sector from shutdowns and blockades, as it is a crucial time for us to make our shipments abroad,” said Shahidullah Azim, Vice President of BGMEA.
Ahmed notified the delegation that the chairperson would reply to their letter soon.