An outspoken campaigner, a guide lost
Say speakers recollecting memories of Prof Muzaffer Ahmad
Prof Muzaffer Ahmad
Around lunch hours, Prof Muzaffer Ahmad would never keep himself buried in any work, for it was time he would feed his mother with his own hands. And it was also for her that he returned home, sacrificing a foreign job. The words came from friends, colleagues, and students, who were reminiscing about their moments and memories with the recently deceased economist. Bangladesh Economic Association (BEA) organised the commemorative meeting in the capital yesterday. Dr Atiur Rahman, governor of Bangladesh Bank, said, “Professor Ahmad, above all, was a good human being, the most outspoken person we have ever known”. “His role as an environmentalist was tremendously important. We have few people left after him to lead us”, he added. Prof Muzaffer Ahmad breathed his last in the capital on May 23. Describing the professor as a colleague, comrade and friend for 55 years, Prof Rehman Sobhan, another noted economist and chairman of the think tank Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), shared his experiences on Muzzaffer Ahmad. “When Ahmad came back home in 1965 after his PhD to join Dhaka University, the political situation was tumultuous. The university was not a place where one could devote himself to serious academic work. But he went through all of that and continued to teach throughout his life”, he said. The speakers also highlighted his voices for good governance and economic development. “His role in the campaign against corruption was unprecedented", commented Rashed Khan Menon, president of the Workers' Party. Dr ATM Nurul Amin, a dean of North South University, said, “He would always speak reasonably and work rationally. He would listen to others, but never had compromised his stand, without proving others wrong”. An instance of his uncompromising manner also came from Dr Saleh Uddin, vice chancellor of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology. “He was extremely popular as a teacher. He never skipped or compromised his classes for anything”. Dr Ali Ashraf, an economics professor at Chittagong University, also spoke at the memorial meeting.
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