Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer and Leader of the Opposition Shafiqur Rahman today said his party had offered the government a team of technical experts to help address the power and energy crisis, but received no response.

“Jamaat has a skilled technical team at home and abroad in the energy and power sectors. We want to link this team with the government in the national interest, but we did not get a response from the government,” he said while speaking to reporters after a meeting of the party's district-level leaders at Tangail Shilpakala Academy.

Shafiqur said he had proposed involving the experts during discussions on a notice he submitted under Rule 68 of the Constitution in parliament on September 7.

He said the state minister had suggested that the opposition leader speak to him personally, but stressed that the issue required teamwork.

Shafiqur also said Jamaat would cooperate with the government as the principal opposition party, but would not support it blindly. “Our cooperation will be with our eyes open, and our opposition will be based on fairness.”

He further said Jamaat and its allies had begun the second phase of their programmes over six public demands with the Dhaka-Chattogram long march on September 5.

According to him, the programmes would remain “constitutional, disciplined, and peaceful” and Jamaat would cooperate with the government whenever assistance was sought in the national interest.