Bangladesh News

Chief of Army Staff Gen Moeen U Ahmed yesterday blamed bankers for creating panic among businessmen, and termed the bankers’ style of dealing with their clients since the declaration of the state of emergency as ‘nothing else but blackmailing’.

“Bankers are responsible for creating panic among the business community. I even heard that some bankers have been threatening their clients with disclosures of their account information since the declaration of the state of emergency,” Gen Moeen said while addressing members of the Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB), a forum of bank owners.

After the army chief’s speech, during the question-answer session the bank owners did not contradict with Moeen’s allegation, but demanded that the government withdraws some central bank directives, which curtail the power of the board of directors’ of banks. BAB Chairman M Saiduzzaman chaired the meeting.

Describing the bankers’ attitude to their clients, Gen Moeen said, “It was mandatory to fill in a form [for notifying the central bank] for transactions over five lakh taka through any bank, a rule that the banks did not follow in the past, but since the state of emergency had been declared, the bankers started to hand over the forms to their clients, making them frightened.”

“As far as I know the government has yet to issue such an instruction, but the bankers created panic among the business community anyway,” he said.

“I even heard that some bankers threatened their clients with disclosure of how much money they have in the banks. Thus the business community held back and the bankers can’t avoid their responsibilities,” he said adding that a banker even told his client, “I will disclose how much you have in the locker…I will say you have two crore taka in the locker.”

“It’s nothing but blackmailing,” Moeen said.

Referring to the ongoing flood and its impact on the economy, the army chief asked the bankers to refrain from creating any more panic among their clients and to stand beside the people.

Moeen U Ahmed said the government decided to form a committee to monitor every level of the administration during the post flood infrastructure development activities.

The committee, which is being formed, will be comprised of civil society members, law enforcers, media personalities, and local elites, he said.

The army chief said the flood damaged more of the infrastructure than of the agriculture.

Citing experiences of previous governments he said hardly a third of the money for relief used to be spent in post flood reconstructions, and the rest of it used to be pocketed by different groups.

“If the damage was worth 1 crore taka, previously 4 crore taka used to be allotted for rehabilitation, the remaining 3 crore of which would be pocketed”, he said adding that such misuse of money will not happen during the tenure of the present government.

“Whatever the present government will do in post flood infrastructure development, will be documented,” he said.

He thanked the bankers for donating money for the flood victims and assured that whatever money have been contributed, will be utilized properly.

“There was corruption in relief distribution during previous regimes. But we have ensured so far what has been done by the present government in relief distribution, has gone to the flood victims.”

Prices of vegetables on local markets have been spiralling upward due to a lack of proper distribution channels, he said. Citing an example he said while a vegetable item sells for 5 taka per kg in Norshinghdi, it sells for 25 taka at Dhaka New Market.

Prices of vegetables have been going up in the capital because the produce reaches Dhaka after changing at least eight hands, the general added.

He urged the bankers to provide loans to small importers of essential goods so that the monopoly of big syndicates can be broken.

Replying to a banker’s query about establishing a flyover in Dhaka city to ease traffic, Moeen said he personally requested the communication adviser to build a flyover system in the capital.

“I know a flyover system will be a great contribution to the nation if the present government is able to start the work.”

Citing an example, he said 15 years ago a foreign company proposed to establish a flyover in Dhaka and verbally sent the proposal to the minister concerned, but interestingly that minister asked the company what types of personal benefits he would get from the company. When the company tried to get the minister’s final nod, the minister demanded 15 percent of the total project budget as a bribe. Meanwhile, the company went back, because they were not accustomed to bribing, he said.