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STRATEGICALLY SPEAKING

You are out of order Mr. Minister

Brig Gen Shahedul Anam Khan ndc, psc (Retd)
LATIF Siddiqui is completely out of order and the prime minister has done the only thing she could in respect of the errant minister. However, he is yet to be shown the door finally. It will be done soon we hope which would assuage the raw nerves created by the inane comments of the posts, telecommunications and IT minister made in New York.
Any civilised person would find it below his or her dignity to comment on those remarks which could only have emanated from a demented mind. But even at the risk of lending oneself the ignominy of commenting on the garbage that spewed from the mouth of the said minister one cannot allow such things to go uncommented.
Latif Siddiqui made abrasive comments on several matters that included religion, specifically on an important article of faith of the Muslims. But it is not only the contents of the remarks only but also the crass and asinine choice of words he preferred to express his views with, proves how true is the saying that if someone's deeds lower his position, his pedigree cannot elevate it.
The minister is known for his arrogant, imperious and haughty deportment. His latest outburst, this is not the first time he has commented on sensitive issues or treated his audience with contempt and derision, is perhaps because he had gotten away with similar acts in the past. He had once made derogatory remarks about the Speaker of the Jatiyo Sangsad, and in a most outrageous outburst he had said that all those opposition members calling for hartal should be put down. In a civilised society there cannot be more provocative comments than to call upon one to kill another. Not pulling him up, let alone disciplining him then, gave one the impression that the party leadership actually conformed to his views.
The way he doled out public land as a minister and even exempted people from paying their due interest on loans, which was not his remit, shows that he considered his ministry his own fiefdom and those under him his ten-
ants. And he had gotten away with that too.
This time he has gone too far with his snide comments. One could not care less about his religious beliefs or inclinations, and he is entitled to his own opinion about the institutions of Islam, or for that matter of any religion, but he must understand that demeaning a religion or hurting the sentiments of Muslims, or for that matter any religion, does not fall under the category of free speech. And he has made the comment at such a time when the international community, Bangladesh in particular, is having to combat the menace of Islamic extremists who justify their extremist, and indeed un-Islamic, actions on exactly the behaviour and utterances like that of Latif Siddiqui's.
Wise men had said that it is better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubts. And the Holy Bible says that even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue. And Hazrat Ali (RA) is known to have said that a fool's mind is at the mercy of his tongue and a wise man's tongue is under the control of his mind. Unfortunately, Latif Siddiqui has removed all doubts, and by speaking once too often has exposed a lack of even the rudimentary idea of Islam and its institutions.
We feel that the minister deserves much more than the sack. He is unapologetic and continues to hold on to his belief. He is entitled to his beliefs but if that happens to disavow one of the fundamentals of ones faith then there is a problem which, with even the cover of freedom of speech, is made to look like a fig leaf.
However, there are a few things that we must comprehend. The IT minister is not the only loose cannon in the party. There are a few others who, with their undignified mannerism and utterances in public, have brought bad name to not only the party but also to the office they hold. And it is for the prime minister to decide how to deal with them. It would also be a lesson, we hope, for those in high office not to indulge in loose talks that will inflict more than a personal discomfort.
Secondly, while the reactions and criticisms against the errant minister are justified and so are calls for the most severe actions against him, and nobody should see 'politics' in it, what, however, is certainly not acceptable is that the situation should be exploited to create unrest in the country.The writer Is Editor, OP-Ed and Defence & Strategic Affairs, The Daily Star.