Why Only Praise Filled with Gossip and Lies, Not Fact-Based Criticism?

Opinion

If someone does good work, I try to appreciate it. Even if they try to do good work, I praise their effort. If they fail while trying, I still appreciate their attempt and encourage them to move forward. However, if someone tries to claim credit for an event using false information without doing anything good, I believe it is a responsibility to expose the truth.

Recently, during Eid-ul-Fitr 2025, Yunus, the “Dirty Masterminds,” and the “Panchatandab” attempted to spread a rumor that this year, people traveling from Dhaka to rural areas faced no suffering, roads were empty, and there was no traffic congestion. They attributed this to Yunus’s microfinance initiatives and implied that divine intervention had made it possible. Since the number of police has decreased, and traffic controllers are mostly new, inexperienced recruits rushed into service after August 5, many of them from BNP-Jamaat cadres, these claims are baseless and deceiving to the public.

However, it is true that highways were somewhat less crowded compared to previous years, allowing for slightly less hassle for some people traveling to their hometowns. But this ease cannot be credited to Yunus or the BNP-Jamaat cadre police or army soldiers under the Panchatandab’s influence. The real reasons behind the reduced suffering are as follows:

The number of people traveling from Dhaka during Eid was significantly lower this year. Every year, during Eid, a large number of people leave Dhaka to celebrate with their families. This year, however, the number was surprisingly low. Although the unelected government tried to spread false information, mobile companies have been publishing data for the past five years about how many users leave Dhaka during Eid. I am confident about the past five years because I have collected this data myself. Some may argue that not everyone uses a SIM card, but this is false. Almost 100% of those who travel to rural areas during Eid use SIM cards. Though some people use multiple SIM cards, the annual variation remains consistent. Many children do not use SIM cards, but on average, one SIM is used per household member during Eid.

According to reports, this year, around 4.1 million people left Dhaka in the two to three days before Eid. On the other hand, during the four days leading up to Eid in 2023, approximately 8.6 million people left Dhaka, more than double this year’s number. Assuming a similar pattern for four to five days this year, the total would have reached only 5 to 5.5 million people, significantly lower than the expected 9.2 million. The annual influx of new residents in Dhaka is estimated to be over 600,000, most of whom are poor, earning less than 7,000 taka per month. For such people, traveling to their hometowns during Eid is a major occasion. Based on the 2023 statistics, if 8.6 million people left Dhaka then, it was expected to rise to 9.2 million in 2025. Instead, only 5 to 5.5 million people traveled, leaving a gap of 4 to 4.2 million individuals.

The reasons for this reduced travel include lack of security and economic hardship. Since the government change on August 5, 2024, Bangladesh has become more unsafe than ever before. The events of February 5, 2025, when over 1,000 political leaders’ homes were burned down nationwide, or the destruction of businesses during August 5–15, 2024, are unparalleled in the country’s history. Thousands of civil servants and political activists were killed in this period, and indemnity was granted to the perpetrators. Over the last eight months, the security system has collapsed, resembling countries with civil wars. Even Pakistan and Afghanistan are currently safer. Under such circumstances, it was expected that millions of people would avoid traveling to their hometowns for Eid due to insecurity, which indeed happened.

Bangladesh’s economy, which had become the second-best in South Asia in the past 15 years, is now on the verge of collapse. With thousands of factories shut down and millions unemployed, people are struggling to meet their daily expenses, let alone afford travel for Eid. Economic data reveals that sales during this Eid were 300 billion taka lower than the previous year, a staggering number that underscores the financial struggles of the populace. Despite a 2.94 billion USD increase in remittances in March (82% higher than the previous year), this did not translate into higher Eid spending due to several reasons: a significant portion of the money went to a specific group with limited spending priorities. Much of the remittance was used to pay off debts incurred over the past eight months of economic mismanagement. People opted to save rather than spend, anticipating further economic destruction under the Yunus-led regime.

This year’s lower traffic and reduced travel are not signs of improved governance but rather a reflection of insecurity and economic hardship. Yunus and his allies deserve no credit for this situation, which actually highlights the country’s challenges.

— Shamim Ahmed
Writer and Researcher, Ontario, Canada