For the first time ever in Bangladesh a Catholic was elected to fill one
of the highest offices of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the
largest opposition party. Albert P Costa is a member of the Bhadun Gazipur parish, near the capital. He was elected yesterday as president of Jubo Dal, the youth wing of the party that plays a decisive role in political activism.
His appointment represents quite an exceptional circumstance in Bangladesh, where Catholics represent just 0.4% of the population out of a total of about 160 million inhabitants.
Immediately after his election, Albert P Costa told AsiaNews: "I got this job at a time of extreme difficulty for the BNP. Thousands of our activists are subjected to legal proceedings by the Bangladeshi ruling party Awami League. I will take this responsibility seriously. I will reorganize the party from the groud up".
The Catholic has replaced Moazzem Hossain Alal, who was elected Deputy Secretary-General for political education. Albert has been the president of the Metropolitan Christian Co-operative Housing Society Ltd for some time. It is the leading organization for cooperation in Bangladesh, managed by Christians.