Asif Mahmud to resign before schedule announcement

Asif Mahmud Sajeeb Bhuiyan, advisor to the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives and the Ministry of Youth and Sports, is stepping down as advisor before the schedule for the 13th national election is announced. He himself revealed this information on Tuesday (August 12) during the US-based media outlet Thikana’s ‘Khaled Muhiuddin at the Address’ program. Asif Mahmud said, ‘I have been involved in politics since 2018. Someone who is involved in politics should not be in the government during the election period. Therefore, I will step down from the government before the election schedule is announced.’ Although it is clear that he is involved in politics, he did not say anything about whether he will be a candidate in the next national election or whether he will join the National Citizens Party (NCP). Stating that he has no personal conflict with the army or the government, Asif said, ‘We acknowledge the contribution of the army after August 5 or before the mass uprising. However, the disagreement with the army chief is only on the Awami League issue. Indicating the activity of various forces during the interim government, he further said, “A group is making efforts to bring the Jatiya Party to the elections. They want to bring this party to the fore as the main opposition party. They are also trying to bring the leaders of the Awami League who have a good image to the elections by using Japar.” Dr. Asif Mahmud also mentioned that there are multiple centers of power within the government led by Muhammad Yunus. In his words, “After August 5, the military has become one of the centers of power. Apart from this, there are different political forces. Each advisor has come from a different place. For these reasons, there is no single center of power.”