The prime minister of Bangladesh, Tarique Rahman, has sought the cooperation of the Malaysian prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, in easing the continuing gas crisis. He made the request in a telephone conversation with the Malaysian prime minister on Tuesday afternoon. Anwar Ibrahim later gave an assurance that Malaysia would help ease Bangladesh’s gas crisis after discussing the matter with those concerned in his country.
The state minister for power, energy and mineral resources, Anindya Islam Amit, gave the information while speaking to journalists at his office at the secretariat on Tuesday.
The state minister said: “The FSRU [floating LNG terminal] through which we are regasifying imported LNG may be an installation or structure run under private management, but this is a government of the people. The people have given our prime minister the responsibility of running the state through their votes. We feel that responsibility; it is because we have an obligation to the people that we are making every effort to solve this problem.”
He said: “Feeling the gravity of the problem, the prime minister wrote a letter yesterday, on Monday, to the Malaysian prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim, which our education adviser, Mahdi Amin, who is on a visit to Malaysia, handed over in Kuala Lumpur today. At 2pm Bangladesh time today the prime minister, Tarique Rahman, spoke by telephone to the Malaysian prime minister, Anwar Ibrahim. He sought his cooperation and that of his country in tackling this energy crisis in Bangladesh.”
Anindya Islam Amit said: “Anwar Ibrahim assured the prime minister that from his side and from his country’s side, he will talk to his team as quickly as possible about whatever can be done to ease this crisis, and will speak to the relevant ministry and inform the prime minister [Tarique Rahman]. They [the Malaysian government] will give quick feedback, so that Malaysia and the Malaysian government can stand beside the people of Bangladesh in easing their suffering.”
He said: “I feel the need to give this message because this problem of the people, this suffering of the people, pains us at every moment, and we share the suffering of the people of Bangladesh. In some ways our own words, our own pain, are greater, because the people have given us the responsibility of ending their suffering.”
Saying that the power, energy and mineral resources ministry is working day and night to resolve the crisis, the state minister said: “Just as the other organisations of the energy division, Petrobangla and RPGCL, are working day and night, the prime minister, Tarique Rahman, is also keeping in contact with us about developments at every moment and trying to do whatever he can from his side. We are not able to supply gas as demand requires. So the prime minister has sought the help of the Malaysian prime minister in minimising the gap between demand and supply.”
Asked a question, he said: “We are working on the possibility of importing LNG from Malaysia. That is a matter of process. How quickly we can complete that process, and whether there is any alternative route where they can help us with their experience, help us with their advice, or share their resources with us — all of it is possible.”
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report