Tue 3 Jul 2007
Can the empire strike ( or at least scratch) back?
Posted by Rumi under Bangladesh , Democracy , PoliticsNew Political Storm
A storm is rapidly forming in Bangladesh’s political horizon. As thunders are not supposed to be heard during the winter, political storm should not form under a state of emergency. But it is happening and apparently under the direction and patronage of the people enforcing the state of emergency.
What is reform
Most striking thing about the reformniks is the similarity of the wordings, contents and style of presentation of the reform proposals. In a very brief rundown,
1. Reforms are being proposed by one leader at a time in a press conference at his home. The reformists are going distances to make it look like that it is his personal proposal. e.g. Mannan Bhuiyan didn’t allow anyone to sit beside him while reading out the proposals. Same thing was done by Tofael and Razzak.
2. All three proposals presented so far are strikingly similar. It mostly proposes removal of current leader by imposing a term limit, establishment of a joint leadership, implementation of accounting transparency etc.
3. All the proposals made sure that the current leader will be out of the scene.
July 3rd, 2007 at 12:40 pm
“Some leaders are still free who have corruption allegations against them and who would naturally be the next target..”
It seems that these people are desperately trying to be in the good books of the authorities so that they do not become the next target. This may explain why all their reform plans has one thing in common–get rid of Khaleda/Hasina, in conformity with the wishes of the current authorities.
July 3rd, 2007 at 11:34 pm
I agree with Tanveer. But, I believe M&M (Moeen and Masud) finally is able to control events and implement “Minus Two” theory, which was planned long before 1/11.
Bravo, M&M!!!
July 4th, 2007 at 2:34 am
I think ‘minus two’ will be followed up by ‘minus Vito Corleones’, sooner rather than later, as a logical result of the on-going anti-corruption crusade, orchestrated by the western powers-backed Army.
July 4th, 2007 at 3:27 am
I think CTG should review comments of Saleh Tanveer.
Tonight, in different TV channel we saw that all the family member of ex state minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku arrested and sent to jail. Arrestee includes Sara, daughter of Tuku, who is an unmarried girl, student of graduation in law. We also saw that another ex state minister Prof Rezaul Karim giving interview in front of Mannan Bhuiyan’s house with a smiling happy face. I have no objection about the arrest of family member of Tuku, if they really involve in corruption. But how Prof Rezaul Karim is out of jail? The family of Rezaul Karim made hundreds of crores Taka by manipulating political power in last 16 years.
Two months back Prothom Alo published a detail corruption report of Rezaul Karim in front page. Shaptahik 2000 also published a cover story on corruption of Rezaul Karim. They published some of the details of land, which he acquired in last 5 years. His driver describe one of his fellow friends, how he received 5 huge jute bag full of money as bribe from Concord against the contract of first mazar of Zia, Chittagong. He also took money regularly from the large industrial units of his constituency.
At the time of 91-96 BNP regimes, his elder brother Fazlur Rahman borrowed a huge amount of money from nationalised Sonali Bank and became the top most defaulter of the country. Again, in 2002, by manipulating the political power, Fazlur Rahman got 40 crore Taka waiver from Sonali Bank from his outstanding loan. At that time it creates huge controversy.
Ref:
http://www.daily-dinkal.com/details.php?nid=5684&pubdate=2007-07-04
July 4th, 2007 at 5:05 am
Naved, this is only the tip of the iceberg, I guess, that we have seen in the last 6 months or so. Could we imagine, before it really happened, that all the family members of a former Minister would be arrested? So, is there anything to be really worried about the free Rezaul Karims? My hunch says its a matter of time only before they get caught too like the ‘anti-reformists’. Recent reports, of Amader Shomoy, also suggest so that the so-called ‘reformists’, like Rezaul Karim, will face the legal musings once the mission ‘minus two’ is accomplished.
July 4th, 2007 at 6:49 am
Is the CTG asking us to believe that an unmarried student (#4) actively took part in stealing state assets? This corruption drive is too important for it to turn into a (metaphorical) witch-hunt.
July 4th, 2007 at 7:22 am
I am still trying to get used to Ahbab Aziz’s hunches about who will be arrested in the future.
Per Ahbab, the reformists AKA the hidden corrupts will be arrested after minus two is accomplished. The the country will be Minus and and and minus the rest. Who, then, will run the country?
And “Bicharpoti’r bichar ke korbe?” Who will deal with new group of corrupts that allegedly replaced Howa Bhavan in different big dealings?
July 4th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Thank you Ahbab. We also hope for a corruption free society. But, as a citizen its frustating to see that CTG allows some corrupt leaders to hold meetings in the name of reform.
Mannan Bhuiyan got only 2700 votes in the year 1979 as UPP candidates. He live in a mess of Shantibag, before move to a small goverment quarter of his wife.
http://www.amardeshbd.com/sub_section.php?issueID=489&sub_section_id=19&NewsID=119088&NewsType=bistarito
Mannan Bhuiyan, living out of party welfare till 1990. Now 16 yrs later, leading the most corrupt ministry (LGRD) as per TIB for five years, owning Houses in Gulshan, making frequent medical trips to Singapore (each one costing at least a million Taka), maintaing luxury cars, looting LGRD owned dairy Milk Vita to its destruction. Can CTG please compare the present wealth of Mannan Bhuiyan with the same of 1990?
We hope CTG will arrest REZAUL KARIM and his two brothers for their ill gotten wealth. These are two links, where you can get some idea about the corruption of REZAUL KARIM
http://www.prothom-alo.org/archive/news_details_home.php?dt=2007-06-06&issue_id=272&nid=NzM2Mg==
http://www.shaptahik2000.info/issues/2007/issue_46/pdf/xf20070330.pdf
July 4th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Rumi, can you please enlighten about the new ‘Bicharpoti’ who ‘allegedly replaced Howa Bhavan in different big dealings’? Who they are?? How much they have stolen??? Where is the stolen money????
July 4th, 2007 at 1:24 pm
“How much they have stolen??? Where is the stolen money????”
Ahbab, isn’t it you folks who first should answer the same questions about the people who are already kept in the jail or are given 10, 13 , 26 years of jail for ridiculous charges like carrying foreign wine or other unbelievable charges!!!!
ANSWER the same questions about the jailed people first. You WILL then get your answer in due time !!!!!!
July 4th, 2007 at 3:46 pm
Asif,
Are you saying unmarried student did not get the benefit from the the “state stolen money”?
Why should we only punish those who stole? What about the family that used the money for personal benefit while at the same time being mum about corruption? Just passing on the blame to Iqbal is wrong.
If the unmarried educated student is innocent, why does not she become a witness against Iqbal?
About Alcohol:
I and many people I know in BD drank alcohol.
But the fact remains its illegal. The democratic government had ample time to repeal that absurd law.
Virtually all politician drinks in BD and yet they make it illegal claim its unislamic.
I for one am glad that this hypo critic law is put to test.
You cannot have two laws in a functional society. One for the poor and another for the elites.
The politicians are facing nothing that the poor don’t face everyday (extortion, torture, unjust law, police harassment).
To say its unjust for politicians is doing injustice for the poor victims of Bangladesh.
Atleast the politicians had powers to change these laws, but they never bothered, because they thought they were beyond the legal system.
July 4th, 2007 at 7:01 pm
Hasi,
I fully agree with you that if anyone involved in corruption should be punished.
According to daily New Age, Sarah, daughter of Tuku is a college student. New Age also wrote, “The Anti-Corruption Commission in a notice on February 18 asked Mahmud to submit the wealth statements of him and his close relatives to the commission. On his behalf, his son Abed submitted the statements, showing a total wealth of Tk 35 crore. But, the commission in its investigation identified Tk 4.96 crore worth of assets as illegal.”
Does it fair to arrest a dependent daughter for mismatch in submitted wealth statement of an alleged corrupt father? I heard that Tuku’s father was a minister in Pakistan regime. Sarah’s family live in a family house at Asad Avenue in Dhaka for quite a long time. They have maintained a high living standard also. Tuku also involve in business and one of the owners of APEX GROUP. How a daughter can understand that his father involve in corruption if there is no change in living standard. Yes, your logic is applicable in case of Mannan Bhuiyan’s children, because without any known source of income, Mannan Bhuiyan now becomes owner of houses in Gulshan. Before 1991 he lives in a small government quarter at Baily dump.
When ex MP Abul Hossain Khan got bail after conviction in an arms case and attend regularly in meeting at Mannan Bhuiyan’s house. At that time Sarah refused for bail. Is her offense serious than Abul Hossain Khan? Is she a dangerous person than an arms case convicted ex MP?
I think each and every citizen of Bangladesh is in favour of anti corruption drive of present government. But it is necessary to act impartially. Otherwise all good steps of present government may jeopardised.
July 4th, 2007 at 7:39 pm
“If the unmarried educated student is innocent, why does not she become a witness against Iqbal?”
Exactly how many of us here would personally choose state or our principles over family?
July 4th, 2007 at 9:33 pm
Ahbab Aziz, Hasi etc.
Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan is General Seretary of BNP while his joint secretaries Tareq Rahman et el are in custody for irregularity charges. If a teen age daughter can be thrown into jail for her dad’s untaxed money, shouldn’t the same logic apply to Mannan Bhuiyan as a cohort in the crimes committed by the members of his political family?
July 4th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
Rumi, the present state of Bangladesh is a greater testimony, than anything else, to the corruption of those in jail now. Sentencing these people for frivolous crimes does not absolve them of their inexcusable crimes; neither does the fact that many more criminals are yet to be brought to book.
Now, would you tell how much the present rulers have stolen in the last six months or so? And, where they have stashed it??
July 5th, 2007 at 3:31 am
All significant politicians capable of handling the party crown are more or less corrupt. Only differentiations is done by few crores vs hundreds of crores. CTG’s obvious plan is “minus 2″ and to float a new party. It seems that floating new party is getting more difficult. So a “significant” reform in AL & BNP is prescribed.
All the possible leaders Mannan Bhuiyan & RATS after “minus 2″ will not pass the litmus test for corruption. But why they are tolerated? IMO, if these guys are not there, the rest of carcass of remaining BNP/AL will fall apart, more so with BNP than AL. This will create a leadership vacuum. Plus, they can be flushed out by term limits. Thus CTG hasn’t put MB & RATS in the s**t list yet. However these “reformers” have been given a chance to prove themselves or else the list comes out again.
One way or another “minus 2″ must occur because this impacts CTG personnels’ own security in post-CTG period. Rest will depend on the post-2008 ambitions of CTG personnels.
July 5th, 2007 at 4:16 am
Asif
“Exactly how many of us here would personally choose state or our principles over family?”
Well some people apparently have.
To Naveed,
Virtually every power player in BD knew about Shekh Rehena and Iqbals affairs.
Sara might have been innocent, but to say she does not have information about all these is disingenuous.
I have no doubt Mannan Bhuiyan and others are corrupt. But even in western legal system, you exempt the “smaller fish” to catch the “bigger fish”.
Mannan is just getting a free ride, to remove Khalea and Co mafia family. There is nothing contradictory about these with CTG. Only difference is, in the west Mannan would have got a legal clemency from attorney general in exchange for his witness against Khaleda. In BD, “the process” is little complex, something that will play out in the next few months.
July 5th, 2007 at 4:51 am
Ahbab Aziz
” Now, would you tell how much the present rulers have stolen in the last six months or so? And, where they have stashed it??”
You dont know that? They are in the same place where Mamun/ Tareq et el stashed all their thousands crores. So now you probably got your answer by now.
But where is my answer? I asked you long ago,
“Per Ahbab, the reformists AKA the hidden corrupts will be arrested after minus two is accomplished. The the country will be Minus and and and minus the rest. Who, then, will run the country?”
July 5th, 2007 at 6:23 am
Rumi, I think relatively unknown, but decent and pragmatic people will get elected and take over the reigns of Bangladesh in 2009, as a logical consequence of the on-going anti-corruption crusade. Recently, Amader Shomoy, arguably the second highest circulated Bangladeshi daily, also reported that hundreds of people, who could not do politics so far because of the stranglehold of black money and muscle power, are going to join politics in near future after the ban on politics gets over.
What is the source of your information, by the way, that the current rulers are stashing money ‘in the same place where Mamun/ Tareq et el stashed all their thousands crores’???
July 5th, 2007 at 7:18 am
Ahbab Aziz
“What is the source of your information, by the way, that the current rulers are stashing money ‘in the same place where Mamun/ Tareq et el stashed all their thousands crores’???”
We have the same source, don’t you know that. The source tells you of Mamun Tareq, that same source tells me about the others.
BTW, you are using Amader shomoy as a reference? I will be damned!!!
We deserve a bit more than hearing sermons with quote from Amader shomoy.
Good luck with your decent and pragmatic people.
July 5th, 2007 at 7:37 am
Dear Hasi,
I fully agree with your following statement-
‘I have no doubt Mannan Bhuiyan and others are corrupt. But even in western legal system, you exempt the “smaller fish” to catch the “bigger fish”.’
I will be happy if CTG really arrest “bigger fishes”. But as of now I don’t think this policy is complied fully.
Do you think Obaidul Quader made more money than Tofael Ahmed in 1996-2001 periods? Who is ‘bigger fish’ then?
Nobody believes that Hannan Shah did more corruption than Mannan Bhuiyan in last 5 years.
In simple arithmetic you can calculate that corruption of Mayor Khoka is thousand times more than Mayor Kamran.
Is corruption of Rezaul Karim less than Amanullah Aman? If you have any confusion, please read the following news-
http://www.prothom-alo.org/archive/news_details_home.php?dt=2007-06-06&issue_id=272&nid=NzM2Mg==
http://www.shaptahik2000.info/issues/2007/issue_46/pdf/xf20070330.pdf
Is the amount of illegal wealth of ex MP GM Siraj or Zahiruddin Shawpan is less than arrested politicians?
For anti corruption drive of present government, everybody now feels that if he/she commits any corruption they may get punishment anytime in future. That’s why we need to co-operate the CTG by providing right information and appropriate suggestions. I am sure, image of the CTG may tarnish if some corrupt ‘bigger fishes’ exempted from any charge.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:46 am
New drama is unfolding. Help me post this in new thread.
Jalil quits politics blasting Hasina
Detained Awami League general secretary Abdul Jalil in a statement has said he is quitting politics on personal grounds but he blasted Sheikh Hasina for her “authoritarian leadership” and begged the government to free him.
“I have decided to retire from politics because of my physical condition and looking at the faces of my children and family,” Jalil, known to be a close aide to Hasina for his unflinching loyalty to the former prime minister, said in the statement.
His wife Rehana Jalil Thursday morning handed a written statement by Jalil to journalists at a press briefing at their Gulshan home and said her husband’s life is at stake in prison. She asked the president and the chief adviser to release her husband arrested from his Mercantile Bank office in Motijheel on May 28.
“I humbly request (the government) to release me and not to increase my detention on humanitarian grounds,” said the statement addressed to chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed. Jalil came down hard on the party chief for what he said was her authoritarian leadership.
“If the Awami League cannot be freed from this authoritarian leadership, it will bring dire consequences to the party and the country.”
END//
July 5th, 2007 at 11:34 am
“We have the same source, don’t you know that. The source tells you of Mamun Tareq, that same source tells me about the others.”
Sorry, Rumi, I am not aware of any such source. And, if you do not believe Amader Shomoy, what is the source, you believe, is rightly informing you about the ‘graft’ of the present govt.?
July 5th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
Hasi,
Since you’re such a righteous upholder of the law that you would rat on your own family why don’t you turn yourself in for drinking alcohol and give the names of your friends and family who are your drinking buddies? It would be a great protest against the hypocrsiy you that pains you so greatly
July 5th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Dear Ed:
Post # 24: Is a personal attack that much a necessity for you to defend your point or outlook! If some one like Hasi believes that some will do the sacrifice why should we make a fun of it! I know your remark is sarcastic because you can’t believe it is possible to put country before self but then history says otherwise. It might seem very unlikely for you that one may sacrifice family over country, but there are ample examples of this in history.
It is the need of the hour that directs one’s action and if the need of hour dictates one to place country before self / family, one would do that. Have no doubt.
The best example of this is our war of independence where many many brave mutojoddhas did exactly that. I am positive if situation demands lot will do that. As lot has done that in past and are doign at present.
Thanks
July 5th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
Ed,
I never claimed myself to be “righteous upholder of the law”. And why should I turn myself to the law when I don’t believe on that ban. Nor has the ban any universal moral justification. On top of that I have never looted state money. This is about moving BD forward, from the mafia that runs the country. What you are saying is me speeding a car and Bush speeding a car is equivalent.Its sad that our ex-ministers has to be compared with common people.
Secondly I never said I will rat my own family. My family will admit there guilt, before harm comes to me. But then again my family never looted the state coffers to be in that position.
Unlike many others here, I don’t try to justify corrupt politicians actions. I believe, BD needs to get lot of cleanup to move forward. A nation cannot exist in a state that BD has been in the past few years. We all had personal failings at one point or another, but atleast for the sake of the nation, we should think whats best for the country, not whats best for us.
Even people in the West, needs to realize, a failed BD state does not do good for anyone. If you want an example look at Pakistan.
July 5th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
“And why should I turn myself to the law when I don’t believe on that ban”
Maybe the daughter doesn’t believe in state taxation, and thus refuses to testify against her father. A true liberatarian. (Ok, obvious joke, but couldn’t resist!)
July 5th, 2007 at 9:12 pm
AsifY
“Maybe the daughter doesn’t believe in state taxation, and thus refuses to testify against her father.”
Well if she believes in no taxation, then thats a valid political dissent. I would actually applaud her for her cause.
Refusing to testify against a state looter is a blatant criminal offense. Specially since she is one of the main witness and benefiter of such criminal act.
So lets not be intellectually dishonest by mixing the two.
So what do you guys want? Iqbal get free and robs another 100s of corer in the next election. While the same time a country with poverty starves to death?
[edited for unrelated personal libel about Shaikh Rehana ]
July 5th, 2007 at 10:22 pm
Calm down Hasi, as I said it’s an obvious joke based on your stance on alcohol. Easy with the accusations of “intellectual” dishonesty and the personal comments about Sheikh Rehana.
I don’t want corrupt people free. But I don’t want innocent people jailed either. I’m still more supportive of the CTG than some on this blog. It just stretches the limits of my credulity that a young student ACTIVELY looted state money.
July 5th, 2007 at 10:39 pm
A Political Storm indeed:
But shouldn’t we deserve it after all that happened to mention a few: I hope we are not so easily forgetful of near past.
About Leader:
1. What should happen to a political Leader under whose leadership country comes atop in corruption! Who should set the first example of taking the responsibility and stepping down!
In US / UK a leader resigns even for loosing an election taking responsibility for the failure. Who should respectfully resign for bringing disrepute to the nation despite having all the power to do otherwise! Why do we have to force reform! Why didn’t it come from within before!
2. Are we put our faith in failed leadership!
Should KZ/SH have slightest regard for leadership and its values / traits they should have apologized to the nation for their failure (bringing country the ill-reputation of # 1 in corruption) and allow fresh blood from within the party. (Please note, while I argue for their accepting responsibility, it should not be conbstrued against political parties as a whole. I feel, in any western country where many of us reside, a respectable leader would have stepped down on his/her own and allowed new blood. Political parties be it AL/BNP will contiue with fresh blood. I refuse to believe that we have no leader to produce from within 15 Crore people. If that is the case let us start making clone of KZ/ SH)
It does not require forced reform for these failed leaders to accept responsibility. All it needs is a little bit of shame and self respect and little patriotism. Assuming thatthey have patrioism, they lack understanding of the culpability or seriousness of their failure. This is even more important when millions of poor people are following them knowing them to be otherwise. The concept of fiduciary responsibility imposes a greater need for accepting their failure.
Political Storm:
Should not we expect this after:
1. Oct 28, 2007
2. 1/11
3. 1/22
4. The rampant / shameless corruption
5. The blatant exploitation!
6. The rise of muscle / money terror like Hazari, Iqbal, Awrongo, Selim, and gong…
7. The rise of Pintu / Falu / TZ
8. Dr. Osman Goni - and the endless stories of corruption ….
9. The state of CTG Port as it was
10. The state of pahar kata….. The faces of child lying lifeless…
11. The state of buying Migs / Frigates
12. The blatant misuse of power to decommission that Frigate just because of its name….
13. The endless Hortal / Oborodh
14. Finally let me stop ….. as the list is never ending….
Lets not be so easily forgetful of what happened since last BNP stepped down. The job of CTG must not be construed to take the realm of power from BNP and hand it over to AL or JP. The job should be to get us out of this mess. So that in future no Oct 28 dares to happen. People’s lives are far more important than the political interest of any party. So that in future no falu rises. So that in future no 1/22 happens….. So that in future so many things that we disliked never happens. So that in future we get a parliament worthy of respect and not filled with hazari/Pintu and gong.
Thanks
LTT
July 6th, 2007 at 12:06 am
Hasi,
I just wanted to make the point, and perhaps I was guilty of doing it in an overly sarcastic way, that you seemed happy to pontificate about Sara while admitting that you were happy to break the law when it suited you. Sure, the 2 crimes aren’t the same, but you’re also assuming that she did break the law. She’s a student and so anything she owns will obviously be disproportionate to her income. And it’s not unusual for people(honest and dishonest) to share assets with thier family. I don’t know how common it is for your average student to investigate thier parents financial activities and as AsifY pointed out, it’s highly unlikely that she was involved in any looting personally.
PS I’m surprised that admin are allowing your rather crude personal attacks on someone who seems to have no relevance to this thread!
July 6th, 2007 at 3:07 am
Hasi wrote-
“Virtually every power player in BD knew about Shekh Rehena and Iqbal”
I think he want to mean the name of ex AL MP Dr. HBM Iqbal, Chairman of Premier Bank.
We are talking about daughter of Iqbal Hasan Mahmud (Tuku), ex BNP state minister for Power.
Two IQBAL’s are separate person.
I think we should consider this matter on the basis of our family and social structure. How many of college student knew that what is the income of their parents in our society? In case of Sarah it is more unlikely to know the income of her father Tuku. Because living standard of Tuku was not changed after he became a minister. Tuku live in same family house more than four decades.
July 6th, 2007 at 3:40 am
Just to add, as an example, to the context of corruption in Bangladesh, one of my close relatives, son of a thoroughly corrupt govt. servant father and then a student of a private university in Dhaka, commented “I enjoy everything in Bangladesh, including its all-engulfing corruption”!!!
July 6th, 2007 at 10:38 am
A mature student doesn’t know of his parent’s income source! It’s nothing but a lie. More or less, we all know the salary scale of our parents and their illegal income source. Despite knowing their illegal income source we always try to legitimate this ill practice by saying that ‘everybody is taking bribe’ and it is a common practice in Bangladesh. It’s really frustrating when we see the educated people who are in a noble profession are trying to encourage the corruption. If we compare the current CTG’s last 6 months work with any 6 months work of the last two regimes of AL & BNP , then we will get the real picture.
July 6th, 2007 at 11:03 am
Can anybody explain, how house of Mannan Bhuiyan become safe place for corrupt and criminals?
Earlier we saw in TV that ex BNP MP and Jubo Dal Vice president Abul Hossain Khan got bail after convicted in an arms case and visiting house of Mannan Bhuiyan regularly. Today we read the following news-
http://www.jaijaidin.com/details.php?nid=19081
July 7th, 2007 at 10:23 am
To clean a contaminated society Law & Order agencies should start with those, who might be considered as potential source for future trouble. We have a very long and disturbing list of criminals who by using our legislation and judiciary committed crimes of astronomical magnitude. Before instigating reform of any kind, we need to make sure those criminals get what they deserve. This will send a clear message to our future politics; PAP BAPKE-O-CHARENA. We may keep bull shitting about constitution, democracy, human rights or foreign conspiracy, but truth of the matter is, nothing is enough to cover-up the dirty faces of those political monsters. Effort to disgrace the current CTG is worldwide and it’s understandable, lot of money and wealth at stake and all the traditional barking to save the skin have been rounded within and only one front left, foreign connection. Barrage of complaints about violation of so-called human rights have been lodged at world highest level, including US senate and the European parliament. One shouldn’t be intimidated by these kind of moves, this is an historical opportunity for our nation to stand on own feet and be part of modern world. Screwing around nuts and bolts of democracy is not going to work this time, our nation had enough of those cow dunk. If someone has a bit of respect to our hard-working ordinary people shouldn’t be urging to dismantle the Caretaker government.
July 7th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Today, The Daily Star reports that BNP Secretary General Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan Exchanging views with the leaders from Rajshahi division.
http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/07/08/d7070801044.htm
What’s going on in Bangladesh? Is there any government exists? How CTG allows holding political meeting, when they banned politics?
March 8, the caretaker government has slapped a complete ban on all sorts of political activities, including indoor politics, processions and meetings, across the country until further order.
http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/03/09/d7030901085.htm
July 8th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
This is from Asian Tribune. Anybody has any other info?
The link: http://www.asiantribune.com/index.php?q=node/6423
Army backed Bangladesh govt considering Turkish type constitution, gets ‘reformists’ backing
Sat, 2007-07-07 02:02
By M Rama Rao in New Delhi
New Delhi, 07 July (Asiantribune.com): The army backed caretaker government in Bangladesh is considering Turkey type constitution to give a ‘decisive’ say for the armed forces in the nation’s affairs and to ‘maintain the secular character’ of the country.
The ‘political dissidents’ (of BNP and Awami League), who enjoy the official patronage in the bid to enforce the ‘minus two’ theory, also have seconded the Turkey model in their own way.
Turkey’s constitution vests the executive power in the President and the Council of Ministers headed by the Prime minister. It has created a National Security Council which plays a vital role in formulating national and security matters. This statute was brought into force after a referendum in the early eighties.
The caretaker government in Dhaka has examined the constitutions of Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey and some other countries and felt ‘Turkish model might be suitable for Bangladesh’, a report in ‘The News Today’, Dhaka daily, said on Friday. A senior official involved with the planned ‘political reforms’ visited Ankara for a first hand information on the working of the offices of President and Prime Minister and the National Security Council.
Bangladesh junta is impressed by the effective role Turkey provides for its armed forces through the institution of NSC. Besides the army chief, the four main commanders of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and some ‘select’ ministers are the members. The NSC has helped Turkey to maintain the secular character of the country and uphold Ataturk’s legacy.
This official thinking is ‘jelling’ well with the ‘plans’ of the ‘reformists’ in the Begum Khaleda Zia led Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and Begum Sheikh Hasina led Awami League (AL).
Sources close to top BNP reformists told The New Nation that they stand for the formation of permanent National Security Council (NSC) with the President of the Republic as its head and the Prime Minister and Chiefs of three services, among others, as its members.
“The NSC will have the final say on any issue involving national interests and security”, the reformists, whose number is swelling, said. Their other proposals are free the Office of the President from the influence of the Prime Minister’s Office, and enhance President’s authorities, jurisdiction and power and abolition of PM’s secretariat to ‘prevent re-emergence’ of one-person’s ‘parliamentary dictatorship’.
The ‘reformists’ in Awami League also have come up with more or less identical proposals saying “ we want powerful president, not PM”. The party’s presidium member Suranjit Sengupta , who has authored a set of ‘sweeping political reforms’ suggested that the executive power of a government should be with the country’s president and it should be exercised by the president ‘through the cabinet instead of the prime minister’.
‘The state should be run based on the principle that the prime minister is the first among equals, instead of a prime ministerial dictatorship’, Suranjit said.
“Under the prime ministerial system of government, the president had no power other than to visit graveyards for special prayers, but the present President Dr Iajuddin Ahmed does not even have the power to decide whose grave to visit”, he remarked.
Both Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina are trying their best to protect their ‘turf’ and ward off the onslaught on the hold they have over their parties. Turn of events show that they are waging a losing battle.
This is clear from the ‘mercy’ plea of Awami League general secretary Abdul Jalil. The unquestioned number two in the party is detained since May 28 and he has been ailing.
In a four-page letter addressed to the Chief Adviser of the caretaker government and signed July 2, Jalil held Sheikh Hasina and her “dictatorial leadership” responsible for all the wrongs in the party. He announced his decision to ‘retire’ from politics and appealed to the government to release him ‘considering his critical health condition.’
- Asian Tribune -
July 12th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
Hasi,
Hey bro Hasi your talking about family being punished for enjoying their father’s corrupt money and daughter becoming a witness against her father. Let me give you a test, go through your father’s tax and financial record for last 10 years and I am sure you will find something that he did illegal. You take that document and go to the police station and “become a witness against your father”. Then I will agree with you.
We Bangladeshis talk about injustice, corruption and other great stuff. It makes us feel good inside. But when things boil down to us are we really up for the challenge? Maybe you are? Prove it to me and talk my test. Or if you can’t do it then don’t talk about great things.