Mosquito menace

The people of Chittagong City suffer from the mosquito-menace now a days. The alarming number of mosquitoes in the area has tremendously intensified this pain. They come out in swarms and seem to prevail all around.

People cannot do any serious work. Especially the students and children suffer much from mosquito-bites. On the other hand the poorer sections of the people who cannot afford mosquito nets and coils to prevent mosquito bites are the easiest victimsof this menace. Our municipal corporation has not been able jo take any effective measures to stop the bleeding of mosquitoes in the area. The drains, dustbins, ditches are full of dirt and filth, these are the ideal places of

mosquitoes in the area. If we want to get rid of mosquitoes, dengue and malarial fever there must be some good efforts on the part of the Municipal Corporation to eradicate mosquitoes from the area.

Sumaia Sharmim

Dept of ELL IIUC

Taxicab attention

Taxicabs are now the common media of transport of the terrorists and hijackers. When I read it in the newspaper, I was very shocked and wondered in which way the country was moving? Though there were lots of complaints about taxicabs, nowadays some taxicab drivers are colluding with the hijackers in committingcrimes. This is unbearable!

I urge the authorities to take

proper steps to solve this problem. Tlnnat Ronnana

Dept of ELL IIUC

Drug addiction — a social cancer

A social cancer has extended its poisonous claw all over the world. Drug addiction has now become a serious global problem. Because of romantic curiosity, young people get addicted to drug. But the root cause is frustration, unemployment problems and social insecurity. Political unrest and lack of family ties are also responsible for it. Drug addiction is the cause of various crimes in the society. Drug damages the brain as well as other organs of the human body. Thus it kills a man. slowly but surety. Therefore, it is very essential

to prevent the problem if we want to have a bright future for our young generation. For it, there is a need for an effective programme of the parents and of the government’s.

Nusrat Sharmin

International Islamic University Chittagong

Addition to Kibria's reply to Justice Latifur Rahman

Mr. Shah A M S Kibria’s reply to Mr. Justice Latifur Rahman was published on December 5. It seemed that Mr. Kibria had missed some points in his reply. In the rejoinder Justice Latifur Rahman said, "Reform of a caretaker system is a matter purely within the domain of the parliamentarians and the

politicians of Bangladesh." In democratic views it is within the domain of people of the country. Parliamentarians are the representatives of the people. They act in accordance with the people's wishes. He undermined the right and power of the people.

The system of caretaker government has been introduced in our country to make the general election more acceptable to all political parties and to the people as a whole. So, it is expected that advisors should be selected in a manner that they can enjoy the maximum confidence of the participating parties and the people. In view of this, consultation with the political parties in selecting advisors may yield congenial atmosphere. But Justice Latifur Rahman expressed totally opposite view in

this regard. He said that the Chief advisor is fully empowered to appoint his advisors and he was not required to seek advice of any political party in appointing his advisors. Someone may term his attitude as authoritarian rather than democratic. We strongly believe that Justice Latifur Rahman is very much aware about statute lawand convention.

Although in statute law, in this case in the constitution of Bangladesh, there is no compulsion for consultation with the parties to appoint advisors, but convention was there. President Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed told him that BNP and AL also sent lists in 1996. If he were respectful to conventions Justice Latifur could accommodate wishes of both the Parties. His disclosure of appointing two

advisors from AL list is appreciable. It could be more appreciated if he could disclose how many advisors were taken from BNP list and how many were of his own choice.

This could help him to exhibit his transparent image. Justice Latifur Rahman has perhaps forgotten the procedures of functioning of the government machinery. He wrote that the President had forwarded those lists to him perhaps for the fact that he also received lists in his time, although there was no provision in the present constitution for sending such lists to the Chief Advisor. It might be the case that Justice Shahbuddin Ahmed had respect for convention for which he had forwarded them to the Chief Advisor. Moreover, in government offices if anything is felt necessary

to be addressed it is sent to the concerned authority. President Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed might have felt that were be by the Chief Advisor needed to consider the lists and as such had forwarded it to him.

It seems that Justice Latifur Rahman pretends not to understand what Mr. Kibria means by "both sides." AL and BNP submitted their lists to him. President Justice Shahabuddin Ahmed also forwarded the same to him. Other parties did not submit any list, neither to him nor to the President.

On this ground reality, there was scope for Justice Latifur Rahman to understand what Mr. Kibria meant by" both sides." MiLRafiqu Islam Rail Road, Jessore