Rejoinder to Honorable Prime Ministers’ Comments on Professor Muhammad Yunus

• Responses to Media
• 13th December 2015
• YC

To download the rejoinder in Bangla click here.

Recently, several daily newspapers have reported Honorable Prime Minister's alleged remarks about Nobel Peace Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus at a weekly cabinet meeting. .

According to the news published on Monday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina while chairing the weekly cabinet meeting at the Cabinet Division reportedly said “Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus is waiting for Hillary Clinton to become the next US President so that he gets her backing in ‘creating troubles’ for her government and conspiring against the government”.

We are saddened and frustrated by the fictitious and baseless remarks, reportedly made by the Honorable Prime Minister. Such remarks from the most responsible position would not contribute towards building the relationship between our two friendly nations. Professor Yunus is confident in the wisdom of the Bangladeshi people in distinguishing between facts and fiction.

 Honorable Prime Minister was also quoted as saying “Professor Yunus is now in America and plotting against government”. Professor Yunus was very much in Bangladesh when the Prime Minister made this allegation. The allegation that Professor Yunus is now in the US and engaged in negative propaganda against the country is not only resorting to falsehood but also unfortunate.

The reported comment by Honorable Prime Minister about Professor Muhammad Yunus engaging in trouble-making in collaboration with Ms Hillary Clinton’s when she is elected as president is insulting to a respectable leader of a powerful country. The US presidential election is still a year away and Ms Clinton is yet to secure her party's nomination. The theory ‘Professor Yunus is plotting to bring down the Government of Bangladesh when she becomes the President’ is stretching the imagination to the limit. Implicating a front-running presidential contender of a friendly country like the United States with such a serious accusation does not promise our country a good start with new President if she is elected. It does not conform with the established diplomatic norms in any way, to say the least. 

Honorable Prime Minister is quoted in news report said that "Yunus had influenced the World Bank to cancel funds for Padma Bridge from World Bank due to the conflict with me and my government".

Professor Muhammad Yunus had already given a statement, and repeated it every time in the press when Honorable PM makes the same allegation. Professor Yunus said that Padma Bridge is a dream of the people of Bangladesh, and that he would never stand in the way of realizing that dream. It is out of the question that Professor Yunus encouraged World Bank to cancel the Padma bridge loan. He would never do such a thing against the interest of Bangladesh. Professor Yunus is happy to learn that Padma bridge project is now well on track. Yunus has dedicated his whole life to build various institutions for the welfare of the people of Bangladesh and would never do anything against the interest of the people of Bangladesh. Such unfair and unfounded smear campaign to discredit one of the most respected and celebrated Bangladeshis and his work is unfortunate. It is shocking that Honorable PM keeps repeating the allegation without ever presenting any proof in support of her allegation.

Sadly, Honorable PM has never presented any evidence in support of her claim. The new addition to such continued fallacious remark is that, if Hillary Clinton becomes American President, it would be harmful for Bangladesh since Hillary Clinton is a friend to Professor Yunus. 

There are important implications of Honorable Prime Minister’s comments for the country and personally for Professor Yunus. They create false impressions in the minds of people within and outside the country. We have responded to all of these allegations and issues elaborately before. Media has carried all our responses in details. We are sorry that same allegations keep on resurfacing.