Al-zakir
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Jun 18, 2010
Bangladesh Awami Leauge suffers defeat
CHITTAGONG (Bangladesh) - BANGLADESH'S ruling Awami League party suffered an unexpected blow on Friday when an opposition candidate won a crucial mayoral election in the port city of Chittagong.
Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) candidate M. Manzur Alam beat the incumbent ruling party candidate - who has been mayor for 17 years - by 95,528 votes, Chittagong election commission official Shafiqur Rahman said.
'People responded to our promise of change in Chittagong,' Mr Alam told reporters after the initial results were announced.
The BNP, which is currently boycotting parliament and has called a protest strike on June 27 to try to bring down the government, said their Chittagong victory signaled widespread discontent with the AL's 'misrule'.
The result marks the first loss of a key position for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League 18 months after it won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections that ended two years of military rule.
'This defeat is a signal for the government, we accept the result, we realise that the people have spoken and we will help the new mayor as best we can,' said Obaidul Kader, a senior AL leader. -- AFP
Bangladesh party suffers defeat
Bangladesh Awami Leauge suffers defeat
CHITTAGONG (Bangladesh) - BANGLADESH'S ruling Awami League party suffered an unexpected blow on Friday when an opposition candidate won a crucial mayoral election in the port city of Chittagong.
Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) candidate M. Manzur Alam beat the incumbent ruling party candidate - who has been mayor for 17 years - by 95,528 votes, Chittagong election commission official Shafiqur Rahman said.
'People responded to our promise of change in Chittagong,' Mr Alam told reporters after the initial results were announced.
The BNP, which is currently boycotting parliament and has called a protest strike on June 27 to try to bring down the government, said their Chittagong victory signaled widespread discontent with the AL's 'misrule'.
The result marks the first loss of a key position for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Awami League 18 months after it won a landslide victory in parliamentary elections that ended two years of military rule.
'This defeat is a signal for the government, we accept the result, we realise that the people have spoken and we will help the new mayor as best we can,' said Obaidul Kader, a senior AL leader. -- AFP
Bangladesh party suffers defeat