The week that was

Al Biruni

Planning Minister meets a snatcher!

Hardly dignitaries fall prey to such lowly criminals as snatchers because they do not walk the dark streets alone. But our Planning Minister MA Mannan met a snatcher recently though it was not in his work schedule that day. He was sitting in his car and talking on his expensive mobile phone when a chhintaikari came from nowhere, grabbed his phone set and ran away. This unplanned encounter left the powerful planning minister shaken. He, however, found out the hard way what the common citizens often face in this bustling metropolis. Hope this time security on roads will improve.

MP given mud shower!

Though MP Aktaruzzaman of Khulna 6 had taken his bath in the morning yet voters chose to welcome him with a mud shower. He did not quite like the idea but when he went to inspect a broken dyke, which had caused flooding of many villages, they decided to bombard him with wet mud. He ran away with some of his henchmen to escape the wrath of the voters, who were living in chest deep water because of the broken dyke. It is expected that dykes will be more durable from now on.

Poppy seed instead of mustard seed!

Ingenuity finds a new meaning with some Bengali businessmen. They are always engaged in doing the wrong thing spending money and energy instead of investing them in doing the right thing. They push gel and nails inside shrimps and prawns to increase weight. This is just one example. Recently, a consignment has been seized at Chittagong Port where importers had filled the front part of a container with mustard seed. But closer inspection revealed that the back part of the container was filled with contraband poppy seed.

Drug like LSD enters the country!

A dangerous drug like LSD has been coming to Bangladesh for many months and yet our intelligence dept was not aware of it! The fact became public only after a DU student committed suicide under the influence of the drug. And now we know everything about this substance, like the source countries, price, couriers, consumers and so on. Citizens want to know how can such a life-threating drug pass many gatekeepers and reach the consumers for so long a time?

Rain, rain go away!

There is a nursery rhyme that goes like this: “Rain, rain go away, come again another day”. In the olden days, rain used to be a welcome breather for the residents of Dhaka but now they sing this rhyme in chorus whenever there is a hint of rain in the sky. Because, after a rain for one hour, Dhaka roads will go under knee to chest deep water and bring traffic to a standstill. The once enjoyable rain has become a thing of anguish and angst for them.

Last nail in the coffin!

The tussle between the Election Commission (EC) and the Home Ministry over the issuance of National Identity Card (NID) has taken an interesting turn. The Home Ministry believes it is their job so they should do it. On the other hand, the EC strongly asserts they should do it. Election Commissioner Mahboob Talukder said he was searching for the reason for this unreasonable and self-destructive decision. Expressing his frustration, Mahboob Talukder said it was like striking the last nail in the coffin.

Alcohol lovers in a shock!

Alcoholic drinks are going to cost more as announced in the new budget. What a sad news for the regular consumers! Now they will have to be careful while placing orders for an extra pint. No more inviting close friends to a drink n dinner. But non-drinkers welcome the decision anyway.

Welcome news from the PM

Amidst the unrelenting corona scourge, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has given us good news to boost our morale. She said that her government has taken the initiatives to manufacture Covid19 vaccine in the country. In this regard, negotiations are going on with many countries and manufacturers by Bangladeshi experts. Since, herd immunity is not likely to be achieved even with vaccination of 80% of the population, it would be ideal to bring the entire population under the vaccination programme. Therefore, we hail the announcement that vaccines would be manufactured in the country.