Mahbubul Alam gave an interesting twist to the dictum 'Light at the end of the tunnel' when he was the Adviser in charge of the Information Ministry in the caretaker government of Professor Iajuddin Ahmed. When confronted by the media, he used to say 'No light at the end of the tunnel'. This had become a kind of catch phrase, synonymous with the intractable political condition obtaining in the country at that time. As things progressed, eventually no light could be discernible in Bangladesh's political horizon. Mahbubul Alam kept his cool and tactfully handled a crucial phase.
Mahbubul Alam passed away on Friday morning at the age of 79. He was quite ill for a few days, but few thought that his days were getting numbered. The news of his death came as a big shock to all, the media world in particular. It was all the more poignant as it came close on the heels of the death of A.B.M. Musa who was regarded as the 'guardian' of the journalist community.
Mahbubul Alam, to say the least, was a 'doyen' of the journalistic world. He was editor of a news agency and newspapers while his eventful life also covered such fields as diplomacy as he was in charge of the press wings in the Bangladesh missions in important countries like the United States and the United Kingdom. Alam was also Ambassador to Bhutan. He had the distinction of working in the daily Dawn in the erstwhile Pakistan as its correspondent in New Delhi in the mid-sixties, as the paper's bureau chief in East Pakistan. After independence of Bangladesh, he briefly served as the Press Secretary to Prime Minister Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Indeed, Alam's journalistic and related career was glorious.
Erudite and soft-spoken, Mahbubul Alam was mainly associated with English journalism. An M.A. in political science from Dhaka University in 1957, Alam lost no time in throwing his hat into the arena of active journalism and in the process, he invigorated and embellished the journalistic world in this country. He was well-known to the senior media persons in New Delhi because of his stint there as the Dawn correspondent and in Washington and London where he performed his job admirably in the Bangladesh missions.
I vividly remember, when British Prime Minister James Challaghan was in Bangladesh on a visit in the late seventies, a big press team accompanied him and in a river cruise in the river Sitalakhya, the British journalists were profusely praising the Bangladesh press counsellor. I, as the diplomatic correspondent of the BSS news agency, covered the event. Later, Mahbub Bhai, as we would call him, was also my boss in the BSS as the chief editor and managing director. I take this opportunity of expressing my gratitude to him; he was instrumental in appointing me the chief editor and MD of the BSS. As the Adviser in charge of the Information Ministry in the caretaker government, he did not entertain any political or any other consideration, and so the appointment went to me strictly on the basis of seniority.
Mahbub Bhai was a familiar face in the National Press Club, seminars, symposia, diplomatic parties and indoor gatherings. He could talk with in a convincing manner with sophistication on different issues, especially about foreign affairs, which was a penchant for him. A great connoisseur of food, he would love gourmet items. But diabetes and other complications kept him away from his liking for last many years. A special feature of Mahbubul Alam was his finesse that was distinctly noticeable.
At the fag end of his life, like his 'favourite food', the profession which he nurtured for long with great care and ability was possibly somewhat unkind to him. At the time of death, his wife and all the three daughters were away in the United States, where Mahbubul Alam used to make occasional trips to meet the family. Probably, he did not see the 'light at the end of the tunnel' at this stage of his life. Mahbub Bhai will remain in the hearts of his fellow journalists and others as a gentleman par excellence and a veteran and distinguished media man.
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
