Politics should serve people, not power: Moyeen Khan

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Abdul Moyeen Khan has said politics should be aimed at establishing people’s rights and ensuring their welfare, rather than merely gaining power.

He stressed the need to strengthen democracy by establishing it at the grassroots level and ensuring accountability of elected representatives.

He made the remarks as the chief guest at a discussion with teachers of The Millennium University on the occasion of National Teachers’ Day 2026 at his office at his Gulshan residence in Dhaka on Friday. Representatives of different NGOs also attended the meeting.

The minister said being able to represent the people was a great privilege. He said he had tried to pursue politics guided by the same principles for nearly 35 years, prioritising public acceptance over seeking votes by spending personal money or offering hospitality.

While elected representatives must be accountable to the people, voters also have a responsibility to choose the right candidates, he said.

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Moyeen Khan called for a change in the tendency to spend huge sums of money to win elections, saying politics could not follow the right path without the ideal of serving the people.

Describing local government as one of the foundations of democracy, he said democracy could not function effectively at the national level without being established at the grassroots.

Reforming local government institutions, ensuring public services and holding elections at five tiers of local government are among the major challenges ahead, he said.

He stressed that people must be able to visit polling centres without fear and vote for candidates of their choice.

The minister also expressed support for holding local government elections on a non-party basis, saying this could help reduce political divisions and mutual hostility at the local level.

Highlighting the role of NGOs in social development, Moyeen Khan said they had made significant contributions to poverty alleviation, improving living standards and addressing various social issues in Bangladesh.

The government and NGOs should share the common goal of ensuring public welfare, he said, calling for greater coordination between local government institutions and NGOs to make development initiatives more effective.