The prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, has encouraged the government officials to perform their official duties without fear of any political manipulation and mishandling.
‘You (government officials) may have your own choice of political party. You may give your vote to a particular party. Those all are your personal matters. But you must do your respective duties as a government official with full honesty and sincerity,’ she said.
Hasina made the remarks while addressing the Nurse Assembly’ 2011 at the city’s Bangabandhu International Conference Centre Saturday morning.
The prime minister said after taking office in 2009, the government had ensured ideal environment in the offices.
About the nurses, the prime minister lauded their activities, saying that they do one of the most respectful jobs in the world.
‘We can understand the importance and dignity of the nurses in a civilised society. That’s why we have upgraded nursing profession to second class job status from third class,’ the prime minister said.
Hasina said the government would set up a modern multi-storied building in the city both for official and accommodation purposes of the nurses under the Bangladesh Diploma Nurses Welfare Association.
She suggested that the authorities concerned should reconstruct the Diploma Nurses Association’s old building in the city.
The prime minister requested the country’s affluent people to come up with donation to construct modern infrastructures for the nurses and in other sectors.
She said if anyone gave donation for social works, he or she would be given tax rebate.
The prime minister informed the gathering that process was under way to create new post of 5,000 nurses.
The government would appoint 500 doctors and 14,000 health assistants very soon while a total of 2,664 new posts of different classes have been created, Hasina said.
Activities have been started to set up four new medical colleges and five institutes of health technologies, the premier said.
She said gradually, all the district hospitals would be upgraded to 250 beds.
Already beds of 17 district hospitals have been increased to 250, she said.
The prime minister said the government was strongly determined to take nursing profession to the international standards.
She said her present government had upgraded nurses’ status to second class and introduced BSc in nursing at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University.
Nine nursing institutes have been raised to nursing college with BSc in nursing course while 12 nursing institutes have been built in 12 districts, Hasina said.
‘Plan has been taken up to build ten more nursing institutes. Two nursing colleges have been built while in Khulna construction work of another nursing college is going on,’ the prime minister said.
She said the present government had also opened a new era of higher studies for the country’s nurses.
Hasina said 26 nurses had received MSc degree in nursing from Thailand at government cost while ten more nurses had been sent to that country for the degree.
‘Even the government is sending the nurses abroad for PhD degree,’ she said.
Health minister AFM Ruhal Haque, state minister for health Majibur Rahman Fakir, health adviser to the PM Syed Mudasser Ali, health secretary Muhammad Humayun Kabir and Nurses’ Association’s general secretary Saleha Khatun, among others, addressed the function with association president Ismat Ara Parveen in the chair.
-With UNB/New Age input
