- By Mayukh Debnath
- Tue, 06 Aug 2024 10:19 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Bangladesh Crisis: Economist and Nobel laureate Mohammad Yunus on Tuesday said he was ready to lead the interim government proposed by Bangladesh's army in the wake of Sheikh Hasina's resignation as the prime minister amid mounting unrest in the country.
In a written statement to global news agency AFP, Yunus said, "I am honoured by the trust of the protesters who wish for me to lead the interim government." Calling the formation of an interim government "only the beginning," the octogenarian economist said, "Lasting peace will only come with free elections. Without elections, there will be no change."
Earlier in the day, student leaders at the forefront of the anti-government agitation that led Hasina to flee Bangladesh demanded that Yunus be given the role of advisor to the proposed interim government.
Yunus, whose team on Tuesday said he will return to Bangladesh "immediately" after a minor medical procedure in Paris, is known as an arch nemesis of Hasina. Known as the "banker to the poor", Yunus jointly won the Nobel Peace Prize with the Grameen Bank, which he had founded in 1983 to provide small loans to entrepreneurs who would not normally qualify to receive them.
As his success grew, Yunus, now 84, flirted briefly with a political career, attempting to form his own party in 2007. But his ambitions were widely viewed as having sparked the ire of Hasina, who accused him of "sucking blood from the poor".
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Critics in Bangladesh and other countries, including India, have also said microlenders charge excessive rates and make money out of the poor. But Yunus said the rates were far lower than local interest rates in developing countries or the 300% or more that loan sharks sometimes demand.
(With inputs from agencies)