Chairmen and members of all the 79 Union Parishads, including females, gathered at Shahid Abdur Razzak Park Sunday morning, held a rally there and brought out a procession in Satkhira town.

The rally was addressed by, among others UP chairmen Sheikh Alamgir Haidar ( (Romjan Nagor), GM Anisuzzaman (Kashimari), Prof Rafiqul Islam ( Jalalpur), Gazi Shah Jahan Siraj (Kaikhali), Abdus Sabur and Amit Bannerjee.

They said strengthening local governments is vital for development, good governance and utilisation of government resources.

They also called for more budgetary allocation for local governments and local development projects.

If local governments are empowered, poverty reduction and development of the country will be faster and democracy will be institutionalised, they said.

They also called upon local governments leaders to maintain transparency and accountability in all activities. Political affiliation should not influence any leader in selecting development projects and distributing government resources including grants like relief, they said.

They also demanded return of their power to lease local markets,

Water bodies and ferry terminals.

A large number of people coming from different areas along with the UP leaders also joined the procession that terminated in front of the collectorate building.

They submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner to press their 13-point demand, which includes power to lease markets and water bodies, non-interference in their activities by the local administration and political leaders and enhancement of their remuneration.