Information and Broadcasting Minister Dr. Hasan Mahmud said yesterday the government wants to build an advanced, humanitarian, social welfare state by making spiritual development of people through combining merit, values, patriotism and affection apart from making material development.
“We expect the journalist community will come forward to help develop these thoughts among people,” he told a discussion marking birth centenary of late journalist Zahur Hossain Chowdhury at Jatiya Press Club (JPC) here.
Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar addressed the discussion as the special guest with National Professor Dr AK Azad Khan in the chair.
JPC President Farida Yasmin, its General Secretary Elias Khan, Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) former Managing Director Azizul Islam Bhuiyan and DUJ former President Quddus Afrad also spoke on the occasion.
Hasan, also Awami League joint general secretary, said under Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s leadership, the Bengali nation achieved independence through different movements including struggles for autonomy and the 1971 Liberation War.
But the thoughts of the nation could not develop if some eminent persons, writers, intellectuals and journalists didn’t make unparallel contributions from behind, he said, adding that Zahur Hossain Chowdhury is one of them.
Noting that journalism is not only a profession, rather it is a motto to many journalists, the information minister said journalists play key role in building a nation.
“We need to build a humanitarian social welfare state, not to make only material development like the western society,” he mentioned.
Flouring of human values which is declining day by day is needed for these as human beings are becoming machines with the use of machines for development, he said.
“Human beings should be saved and society should be protected from it and development of human values is required for that,” Hasan said.
He said it is the duty of politicians to help the nation make dreams and here journalists have a big role to play.
“Many reports of journalists make cry and think even a strong-minded person like me whom Chhatra Shibir wanted to kill twice, who narrowly escaped the death in the August 21 grenade attacks and faced junctures of death many times,” Hasan said.
Paying homage to journalist Zahur Hossain Chowdhury, he urged the journalists to contribute to build a state having humanitarian and social values in current context following the footprints of Chowdhury who opened up third eye of the society and the country, gave guidelines for proper thinking through their write-ups nurturing ethics and principles of journalism in his entire life.
