Own Correspondent: The conference of Chittagong Metropolitan Awami League was postponed despite announcing the date three times. It is said that the reason is that there is no ward-station conference. However, the party’s central leadership and grassroots leaders and activists consider this reason as an ‘excuse’. Some say that the reluctance of an influential leader of Chittagong metropolis, while others say that this conference has been postponed due to the dispute over who will lead next.
A central leader in charge of Chittagong told the media that the ‘High-Command’ was upset because the Ward-Police conference was not completed despite repeated requests. As a result, the conference has been suspended for the time being on the orders of the High Command. He even hinted that this committee may be adjourned before the central conference. In this regard, however, city general secretary AJM Nashir Uddin claimed that the city conference was postponed without completing the thana conference for any other reason. The date will be announced later.
Before the central conference, this conference has been postponed so that party conflict does not come to a head in important districts like Chittagong metropolis. The central leader, who did not want to reveal his name due to special reasons, said that the activities of the party in an important district like Chittagong in the year before the election have not been going as they should for a long time. As a result, the Central Committee wants to see a ‘conflict-free’ conference as a political strategy. The leaders were forced to take such a decision after the central leadership received the reports of various intelligence agencies. They do not want to see any conflict in Chittagong for strategic reasons before the National Conference. Even then, if the dispute is not resolved, then this committee can be suspended or cancelled.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s press conference after the public meeting was called at the Bangabandhu Hall of the Chittagong Press Club on Monday morning, but the issue of the city conference came up there. General Secretary AJM Nashir Uddin said in response to the questions of the journalists, “The conference was supposed to be held on December 18, but it is not happening.” I had a talk with Central General Secretary Obaidul Quader and Joint Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif in this regard yesterday (Sunday) after the public meeting. They said, after finishing the conference of Ward and Thana Awami League, then to have a conference of the city committee.
Meanwhile, Central Organizing Secretary of Awami League in charge of Chittagong Division, Abu Saeed Al Mahmud Swapan said, ‘My failure is that I could not convince everyone and hold a ward-station conference. That is why the metropolitan conference is not being held for the time being. In a tone of regret, this leader in charge of Chittagong told Bhorer paper, “We wanted to finish the traditional Chittagong Metropolitan Awami League’s grassroots conference of all levels and hold a conference of the city Awami League. But we couldn’t. The sadness of this failure will burn me for the rest of my life.
However, in the press conference, AJM Nashir claimed, “Since we could not complete the conference of the wards and police stations, the city conference is not being held on December 18.” The central leaders said – if necessary, to hold the city conference after the national conference. In an apologetic tone, he said, except for a few, almost all the unit conferences have been held. We have 132 units where we have completed 120 conferences. Out of 44 organizational wards, only 3 ward conferences have been completed. And out of 15 police stations it was not possible to hold a conference. Ward and police station meetings should be completed first, followed by city meetings. When asked when that conference will be held, he said, it is not possible except after the national conference of Awami League. Ward and police station meetings should be completed first. This is the center’s directive.
Even though the date was announced after 17 years, the organization is unable to hold the conference on that date. In the 3rd phase, the city Awami League conference was scheduled to be held on December 18, but it has been postponed again. Earlier, the date of city conference was announced on October 1 this year, but it did not happen. After that, the date of the conference was announced on December 4, but due to the Prime Minister’s public meeting in Chittagong, it was postponed, but the responsible central leaders of Chittagong announced the city Awami League conference on December 18. City Awami League leaders and activists at various levels said that the city conference is not being held due to the disinterest of an influential city leader at the top level. The date of the conference has been announced repeatedly, but it is being pushed back.
Chittagong Metropolitan Awami League has a long history of internal disputes. A part of the two factions in the organization are the followers of late ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury, president of the city committee and three-time mayor. After the death of Mohiuddin Chowdhury, the leaders and activists of that movement are the followers of his eldest son Deputy Minister of Education Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Naufel. Another Dhara Nagar is known as a follower of Awami League general secretary and former mayor AJM Nashir Uddin.
The last conference of Chittagong Metropolitan Awami League was held in 2005. ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury and Kazi Inamul Haque Danu became the president and general secretary respectively. After Danu’s death, a committee was announced by the Center on 13 November 2013. In that, Mohiuddin Chowdhury was made the president and Nashir the general secretary. After the death of Mohiuddin Chowdhury on December 15, 2017, the first vice president of the committee, Mahtab Uddin Chowdhury, was given the responsibility of acting president. No conference was held after that, no new committee was announced. After a long time, when the initiative of the city conference was taken, the conference of unit branches under the 44 organizational wards of the city started from 16 November 2021.
But from the beginning, there were complaints about the location around the conference venue, counter conference and blocking of senior leaders.
Complaints were sent to the center about not giving the membership form to Mohiuddin’s followers, not inviting them to the conference, not including the senior leaders of the city in the conference process, organizing a one-sided conference and excluding the seniors from the committee. After that, the center ordered to close the ward conference on December 23. Awami League of Chittagong metropolis centered on the conference of Trinamool, and the conflict between two opposing factions became stronger.
In January 2022, a 5-member ‘Review Committee’ was constituted by the Centre. The review committee formed 15 organizational teams with the permission of the center assigning one leader of the city Awami League to each of the 15 organizational police stations. They were given the task of completing the Trinamool conference unitedly by resolving the conflict after verifying the complaints about the unit conference. But the dispute was not resolved. As a result, even though the unit conference is over, the wards and police stations are hanging.
In this situation, Central Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif and Organizing Secretary Abu Saeed Al Mahmud Swapan announced the conference of Chittagong Metropolitan Awami League on October 1 in an organizational meeting in Chittagong on May 25 this year. As that was not possible, Abu Saeed Al Mahmud Swapan held a meeting with the leaders of the organizational team of 15 police stations of the city at Chittagong Circuit House on October 26 and set the time for the city Awami League conference on December 4. But on December 4, the center announced the date of the conference on December 18 after announcing the postponement due to the Prime Minister’s public meeting. AJM Nashir Uddin said yesterday that the conference will not be held even on that date.
