'Not a Minister, Eradicate Drugs' — Ishraq Hossain to Announce Final Resignation at Press Club This Afternoon
State Minister for Liberation War Affairs Ishraq Hossain will hold a press conference at the National Press Club at 2pm today, Monday, to make the final announcement of his resignation from the post of state minister. He revealed the decision himself in a post on his verified Facebook page this morning. Since that announcement, the matter has become the most discussed topic in the capital's political circles, and all eyes have turned to the afternoon press conference.
In his post, Ishraq Hossain said he would face journalists at the National Press Club at 2pm and would there make the final announcement of his stepping down as state minister. He also added the word 'Inshallah' at the end of the post. In other words, rather than leaving the issue to speculation, he has chosen to clarify his position formally and in his own words.
Yet only a night earlier, the situation had looked entirely different. When rumours of his resignation spread on Sunday night, his press officer Mahfuz Kabir Muktar denied the reports. Many therefore assumed the resignation talk might remain just rumour. But the state minister's own post on Monday morning changed that impression and turned the rumour into an announcement awaiting formal confirmation.
Meanwhile, reports have also emerged that Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had instructed Ishraq Hossain on Sunday to resign. The announcement of a press conference from the state minister the day after that reported instruction has given the matter added weight in political circles. Political activists and journalists are now waiting to see whether he addresses that issue himself at the afternoon press conference.
Behind this sequence of events lies a controversial drive carried out last Saturday. An armed anti-drug operation was conducted that day along the rail line area in the capital's Gendaria. The operation drew criticism from various quarters, and questions were raised about the manner of the drive and the presence involved. It was amid that wave of criticism that the question of the state minister's resignation gradually began to surface.
Taken together — Saturday's operation, Sunday night's rumours and their denial, the report of the prime minister's instruction, and Monday morning's post announcing a final decision — the sequence now gives the whole episode a fuller picture. Within the space of just a few days, a state minister's position has moved from rumour to denial, and from denial to the verge of a formal announcement.
In his Facebook post, Ishraq Hossain also expressed sharp anger and criticism towards the so-called 'susheel', or self-styled civil society, circles. His remarks made his dissatisfaction with the role of that section clear. Alongside the resignation announcement, that expression of anger shows how deeply the recent criticism and controversy have affected him, and that he wanted to respond to that criticism in his own language.
Resigning from office, however, does not mean Ishraq Hossain is stepping away from politics or field-level work. In his post he said he would continue to work as a worker of the BNP. His message was that even without a minister's chair, standing beside people as a party worker and continuing the fight against social problems would be his path ahead.
At the centre of that fight he has placed the eradication of drugs. His slogan — 'Not a minister, eradicate drugs!' — made clear in the post that holding office or not is not what matters most to him; continuing the work against drugs is what matters. The slogan suggests that despite the criticism over the Gendaria operation, he is not retreating from his anti-drug stance.
Alongside the anti-drug work, he also said he would continue cleanliness drives. In his post he mentioned that his initiatives for keeping localities clean would continue as before. In other words, even after leaving the responsibility of state minister, he has told his supporters of his plan to remain involved in social activities at the local level.
Added to that is his plan to tour districts for the Projonmo Dal. In his post he said he would travel to different districts in connection with the organisation's work. Giving time to organisational work as a party worker and taking that work forward district by district is now his programme ahead. By outlining his future plans on the very day of the resignation announcement, he has signalled that his political activity will continue.
All attention now rests on the 2pm press conference. At the National Press Club, before journalists, Ishraq Hossain will make the final announcement of his resignation, and it is expected that his own explanation of the recent sequence of events will also be heard there. Only after that press conference will it become clear along what path his political and organisational role will move following this resignation.
