In the new political reality in Dhaka, work is underway to prepare official residences for the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. The Ministry of Housing and Public Works said that Jamuna, the residence of the Chief Advisor, is currently being prepared as the official residence of the new Prime Minister.
The Bangladesh Nationalist Party is on track to form a government after a landslide victory in the 13th parliamentary elections . Party sources and political observers believe that the party’s acting chairman, Tarique Rahman, could become the new prime minister.
The government is having to rethink the prime minister’s residence as Ganabhaban is now a ‘July Memorial Museum’. Khalequzzaman Chowdhury, chief engineer of the Housing and Public Works Department, said, “The Jamuna is being prepared. If the prime minister expresses any special demand, arrangements will be made for that.”
However, where the prime minister will stay—in the government residence or in a private residence in Gulshan or the Hare Road area—will ultimately depend on Tarique Rahman’s decision. After returning to the country after a long 17-year stay in London, he is currently staying next to his mother’s residence in Gulshan.
Government sources say that the management of the residence is a purely policy decision. A final decision on this matter can only be taken after the formation of the new government.