The Prime Minister remarked that she was forced to live in exile for a prolonged period of 17 years due to political adversity and conspiracies. While recalling memories of past days at a significant political event, she highlighted this harsh reality, noting that autocratic rule and political oppression compelled her to stay away from her motherland, creating deep scars in both her personal life and political struggle.
Reflecting on those distant days abroad, the Prime Minister stated that the democratic rights and liberation of the common people of the country always remained alive in her heart. Despite enduring the pain of losing family members and yearning to return home, her connection with the democracy-loving people of the country was never severed. She tirelessly worked from abroad to reorganize anti-autocratic movements and party organizational activities, which eventually helped restore the democratic trajectory.
She further mentioned that after navigating numerous ups and downs in her political life, the country is now moving forward on a path of stability and development. Although multiple attempts were made on her life in the past, she survived every time through the love of the people and the grace of the Almighty. This long struggle was not merely an individual journey, she commented, but an indescribable battle for establishing the voting rights and fundamental rights of the general masses of Bangladesh.
Outlining the current government's development initiatives and the framework for protecting democracy, the Prime Minister stated that those who repeatedly deprived the soil and people of the country in the past are still conspiring in various ways. However, no malicious force will be able to stand against the power and courage of the people. She expressed her firm resolve to take the country forward by maintaining a zero-tolerance policy against all forms of injustice and corruption, alongside the citizens.
Concluding her speech, the Prime Minister called upon the country's youth and party activists to remain ever-vigilant in protecting the country's independence and sovereignty. Recalling the sacrifices of the past, she asserted that this country, achieved through a bloody Liberation War, must not be allowed to fail under any circumstances. She sought the sincere cooperation of all in the government's every step toward establishing democracy and good governance, aiming to build a discrimination-free and prosperous Bangladesh.
