There was a good man in this town his name is Anisul Haque. He wanted to make the city beautiful, clean, and suitable for human habitation. The city will be green, there will be playgrounds for children, sidewalks will be empty, there will be separate lanes for bicycles, there will be no garbage on the side of the road, there will be a bus terminal outside the city – these were his dreams. There was a good man in this town.
The man named Anisul Haque did not stop at just dreaming, he came down to the field with his waist tied in the urge to fulfill those dreams. Anisul Haque is not there now, she has the works left, she has her memory. Another election of the City Corporation was held, although the people of Dhaka did not have much of a headache about it, Anisul Haque is very relevant in the heart of Dhaka even after so long after her death. Is it so easy to forget the man who wanted to change Dhaka?
I was watching an old interview with him on Independent Television. During his two years as mayor, Khaled Muhiuddin appeared as the moderator. Abdullah Abu Sayyid was also present. After watching the 14/15 minute video clip, it seemed that we may not even know that we have lost the priceless gem!
Anisul Haque was a man, ignoring the bloody eyes of the influential who repeatedly drove bulldozers on illegal installations. But the same man thought while evicting the illegal hawkers from the sidewalk, if they are removed, maybe the stove will not burn in the house tonight, the children of the hawkers will go hungry.
The same man who risked his life to save the road to the Tejgaon track stand, never feared anyone, never thought of bowing his head, the same man who once again evicted illegal hawkers and became sympathetic to their pain, overwhelmed by the thought of their uncertain future! Such a strange mixture of tenderness and hardness is found in very few people. There was a good man in this town. Anisul Haque was one of those rare species.
Anisul Haque was not a man of politics. He was a TV personality, then an entrepreneur, turning himself into one of the most successful businessmen in the country. Leadership is part of his instincts, which is why the Prime Minister relied on him. He was given the responsibility of managing Dhaka North City. Then how many criticisms, how many questions, thousands of fears of the people. No one in Dhaka has been able to do the amount of work that Anisul Haque did in two and a half years, even after forty-five years of independence!
The road to the Tejgaon truck terminal was rescued only because Anisul Haque was there, no one else could ever do that. The sidewalks in Dhaka North are now suitable for walking, and disability-friendly sidewalks have also been created. Secondary transfer stations have been constructed at 52 places so that garbage does not accumulate on the roads. Discipline has come in waste management. Eleven modern public toilets have been set up, all of which are clean and hygienic.
The city of Dhaka was once plagued with billboards, the control of these billboards was in the hands of influential people, they could not be removed in any way. Anisul Haque came and demolished twenty thousand billboards, did not listen to anyone, did not listen to pleas, was not afraid of threats. Standing by himself, he removed the billboards in one place, no one dared to come and stand in front of him. The influential people of Bisha have melted like limestone in front of him.
U-loop or U-turn is being constructed across Dhaka to reduce traffic congestion, the work was started by Anisul Haque. In order to bring the public transports under one policy, he has run like a buffalo after eating at home, if he had not lost it prematurely, he might have done the same. That would put an end to the violence of the transport workers. He rescued the land he had occupied for forty-five years and demolished Monaim Khan’s house. We proudly say that There was a good man in this town he was a change maker.
Influential people occupied most of Gulshan Avenue, Anisul Haque has sweetly requested them to bring bulldozers to demolish illegal structures and take over the occupied land under City Corporation. He was changing the North City Corporation little by little every day. As long as he was in the north, the mayor of the south had to work for the sake of embarrassment. The work of the mayor of the south during the stay of Anisul Haque, and after the death of Anisuk Haque, the work will be clear only if the work of the south is matched.
Anisul Haque was a man who left his mark, took place in our hearts through work. No one survives forever, work survives. Anisul Haque did that. So when you hear the word development of Dhaka even after death, first of all, the face of Anisul Haque, who wanted to change this city, floats on the screen of the mind!