Nobel Laureate Mohd Yunus takes oath as chief of Bangladesh’s interim govt, 13 advisors also take oath

Dhaka, Aug 9 (Representative) Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus was on Thursday evening sworn in as the chief of the interim government of Bangladesh.President Mohammed Shahabuddin administered the oath to him at the Durbar Hall of Bangabhaban. Prof Yunus took charge of the interim government after Sheikh Hasina resigned as prime minister and fled the country on Aug 5 following widespread protests against her regime.Yunus, 84, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for his pioneering work in microcredit, was appointed as the head of the interim government after President Shahabuddin dissolved parliament on Tuesday. Later, the President also administered the oath of office to the 13 advisers through a function held at his official residence. However, three advisors were unable to take the oath as they are currently outside the capital, Dhaka, Daily Sun reported.Advisers of the interim government are former governor of Bangladesh Bank Dr Salehuddin Ahmed; Prof of Dhaka University Law Department Dr Asif Nazrul; rights activist Adilur Rahman Khan; former attorney general AF Hassan Arif; former foreign secretary M Touhid Hossain; Chief Executive of the Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers Association (BELA) Syeda Rizwana Hasan; Chief Executive Officer of Brotee and freedom fighter Sharmeen Murshid; Faruq-e-Azam, Bir Protik, former Election Commissioner Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain; chairman of Chittagong Hill Tracts Development Board (CHTDB) Supradip Chakma; Director cum Professor, Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Hospital Prof Dr Bidhan Ranjan Roy; Hefazat-e-Islam’s Nayeb-e-Ameer and Islami Andolan Bangladesh adviser A F M Khalid Hossain; women’s rights activist Farida Akhter; Grameen Telecom trustee Nurjahan Begum; student coordinators M Nahid Islam; Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan.Among them, Prof Dr Bidhan Ranjan Roy, Faruq-e-Azam and Supradip Chakma could not attend the swearing-in ceremony as they are outside Dhaka.

They will take the oath of office later, said the Cabinet Secretary.Chiefs of the Bangladesh Army, Navy and Air Force, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, senior BNP leader Dr Moyeen Khan, Jatiya Party Chief GM Quader and other political leaders except of the Awami League, civil society members and journalists, among others, were present at the swearing-in ceremony that began with the national anthem at just after 9 pm. A one-minute silence was observed as tribute to those who died during the anti-discrimination students’ movement. Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain conducted the ceremony. Right after landing in Dhaka amidst a warm welcome, surrounded by students, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus on Thursday said restoring law and order in the country would be his first task. “If you have faith in me, if you have confidence in me, make sure nobody will be attacked. That would be our first task. If I cannot do this, if you don’t listen to me, I don’t need to be here. You must demonstrate that you are listening to me. Rescue the country from disorder and violence,” said Yunus. He referred to the attacks, violence, destruction of properties, including attacks on minorities, and said these are part of a conspiracy. He said their job is to protect everyone. “Violence and disorder are the biggest enemies towards progress. It is the biggest enemy of our journey that has just begun. Restoring law and order is our priority. Until law and order are restored, we cannot take steps to proceed,” he said.Yunus said the revolution through which Bangladesh created a “second Victory Day” should be kept in front and strengthened while moving forward. “This freedom has to reach every home, otherwise this freedom has no meaning; being free means change for everyone,” Yunus said.He said the interim government’s job is to carry out what the people have achieved.

“People do not trust the government, seeing it as an instrument of repression—something to be manipulated. The government cannot be like this, it must be something that will make people’s hearts swell and be a place of trust.” Talking about attackers, he said, “Let these enemies understand, hand them over to law, they have to be punished—not beaten. You have to bring that trust.” Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman, Air Chief Marshal Hasan Mahmood Khan and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral M Nazmul Hassan welcomed Yunus upon his arrival at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.Before leaving Paris, where he had been attending the Olympics, Yunus appealed for calm in Bangladesh amid tensions over the country’s future.Yunus was named as interim leader following talks among military officials, civic leaders and the student activists who led the uprising against Sheikh Hasina. The Nobel laureate known as the “banker to the poor” urged the people of the country to get ready to build the country, shunning any violence which he considers as an enemy. “This is our beautiful country with lots of exciting possibilities. We must protect and make it a wonderful country for us and for our future generations,” he said in a statement on Wednesday, a day before his arrival in Dhaka. Yunus appealed for calm and urged all parties to help the country rebuild after weeks of violence that killed over 300 people and prompted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee to India.