Hasina a 'person of very big heart', says outgoing Malaysian envoy

FE Team | Published: February 01, 2019 00:14:49

Outgoing Malaysian High Commissioner in Dhaka Nur Ashikin binti Mohd Taib on Thursday made her farewell call on Prime Minister (PM) Sheikh Hasina at her office in the city and called her a 'person of very big heart', reports UNB.
PM's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting.
The outgoing Malaysian envoy thanked the PM for her government's support to her during her tenure in Bangladesh.
Appreciating the generosity of the PM, the Malaysian envoy said Bangladesh provided shelter to a large number of displaced Rohingyas.
In this regard, the PM said it is a pressure on Bangladesh, and Myanmar should create a congenial atmosphere so that these people can go back to their homeland.
Sheikh Hasina also extended her thanks to Malaysia for its support over the Rohingya issue, saying, "You can't keep your eyes closed when such humanitarian disaster takes place," Ihsanul Karim quoted the PM as saying.
Bangladesh provided Rohingyas shelter on humanitarian grounds, she said.
The PM said local people of Cox's Bazar are bearing the brunt of giving shelter to Rohingyas as they are losing their cultivable land as well as occupation.
"New Rohingya people are coming to Bangladesh from outside, including Saudi Arabia and India."
She focused on her government's activities to arrange temporary accommodation for Rohingyas to Bhashan Char Island in Noakhali, saying some 8,000 people are working for constructing shelter homes there.
All the facilities, including pure water, will be available in the island, Hasina said, adding that the government is also constructing multipurpose cyclone shelters in coastal areas.
She said a process is on to develop Cox's Bazar Airport as an international standard one, which will link the East and the West. "The airport will be equipped with all the facilities for filling fuel to aircraft."
Recalling the excellent bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Malaysia, the PM said Malaysia is one of the first countries that recognised Bangladesh after the Liberation War.
The Malaysian High Commissioner praised the development pace of Bangladesh, saying it is marching forward fast.
Nur Ashikin said she likes Bangladesh and its people. "I considered Bangladesh like my home country during my tenure," the envoy said.
PM's Principal Secretary Md Nojibur Rahman and her Military Secretary Major General Mia Md Jainul Abedin were present.