Emphasizing the importance of public trust and confidence in the country’s armed forces, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that armed forces cannot emerge victorious in battle if the people do not have trust and confidence in them.
Speaking at the inauguration of the newly constructed Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) building and Army Central Auditorium at the Sena Paribar in Dhaka on Sunday (May 5), she said, ‘Armed forces cannot achieve victory in any battle if there is no trust and confidence of the people in them.’
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said, ‘The trust and confidence of the people in Bangladesh’s armed forces have been established. Our armed forces stand by the people today; they have gained the trust and confidence of the people.’ She mentioned that after August 15, 1975, the trust and confidence that the general public had in the armed forces had diminished.
Sheikh Hasina expressed her efforts to create a sense of trust and confidence in our armed forces among ordinary people. This is essential for any armed forces. Independence requires defense sovereignty.
The Prime Minister said, ‘Our armed forces are beside the people in any crisis, and the people have become a source of confidence for them today. The trust that the people have in our armed forces has enabled our armed forces to acquire that trust today.’
She praised the role of the members of the armed forces in peacekeeping missions, saying, ‘In peacekeeping missions, the contribution of our armed forces to every country is highly appreciated. We aim to further enhance that.’
Regarding the modernization of the armed forces, the Prime Minister said, ‘Taking various initiatives of the government into account, we are aiming for the modernization of the armed forces. We are implementing the Forces Goal 2030 based on the defense policy adopted by the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1974.’
She said, ‘Through the implementation of the Forces Goal, we want our armed forces to be established with modern knowledge. Since our goal in the 2008 election was to build a Digital Bangladesh, our armed forces will also be equipped with modern technological knowledge. That is our goal, and that’s what we are working on.’
In addition to providing advanced medical services to the members of the armed forces and their families in the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP) division, a new building has been constructed to ensure advanced medical services for the general public and at national and international levels in the Dhaka cantonment area.
Besides, the construction of the Army Central Auditorium at the Sena Paribar has been undertaken with the aim of organizing various important meetings, seminars, social events at the national and international levels.
Members of the Cabinet, advisers to the Prime Minister, heads of the armed forces, and senior military and civilian officials of Dhaka Cantonment were present at the event.
