Archive for February 4th, 2008
Monday, February 4th, 2008The Election Commission (EC) is scheduled to meet Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed today to discuss creation of an environment conducive to holding the due polls to five city corporations in April, under the emergency regime.Over the last few months the chief election commissioner (CEC) has been saying that the state of emergency either has to be lifted or relaxed to hold credible elections through allowing electoral candidates to hold election campaigns.In the electoral roadmap announced on July 15 last year, the EC had promised to begin holding the due polls to different local government bodies in January this year, ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008The story of former Titas Gas sales assistant Abdul Kader Mollah would probably beat all incidents so far known about amassing wealth through illegal means. Believe it or not, as an employee drawing only Tk 4,000 in salary when at career's peak, Mollah accumulated wealth worth over Tk 2,100 crore.He has 15 industries, 13 flats, 29 vehicles, a five-storey building, a one-storey house, a farmhouse and 45 acres of land and a balance of Tk 18.53 crore.The startling story was unfolded as a special taskforce of National Coordination Committee (NCC) against Corruption and Serious Crimes started digging into institutional crimes ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008Three days into the beginning of detained former premier Sheikh Hasina's trial in an extortion case, she was produced before a special court yesterday for arraignment in connection with a Tk 3 crore graft case, but the court rescheduled the hearing for Thursday.The court rescheduled the hearing after the defence petitioned for more time to examine the case documents.Awami League (AL) chief Hasina is facing four cases on different charges, which were filed after the present military backed caretaker government had assumed power and embarked on an anti-graft drive targeting high profile graft suspects.The prosecution in their introductory submission ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008The unification process of BNP apparently came to a halt as Delwar, the Khaleda-appointed secretary general of the party, yesterday ruled out the message conveyed by Khaleda's lawyer.Khandaker Delwar Hossain in a press briefing at his Nam flat said the party chairperson did not convey any such message to him through her lawyer.On Friday, Khaleda's lawyer Mahbub Uddin Khokon, after visiting BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia at sub jail, told reporters, "She has asked to unite the party and urged the nationalist forces to unite for the sake of the party and the country."Meanwhile, most members of BNP standing committee decided ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008The food ministry has asked the finance ministry for an additional allocation of Tk 1,002 crore as it has doubled the target of rice import for fiscal year 2007-08.“We need the money to meet the import target raised twofold to cover the shortfall in local procurement,” said a high official of the food ministry.Meanwhile, a three-member team of the ministry led by Molla Waheeduzzaman, director general of the Directorate of Food, yesterday left for Kolkata to discuss rice import from India at a special price proposed after Cyclone Sidr.“We are hopeful this time we will be able to wrap ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed announced an action plan yesterday to rid the country's northern region of Monga, a seasonal near-famine situation, through well-coordinated programmes of the government, NGOs and private sector."The government is paying intense attention to Monga. It's a temporary problem -- temporary unemployment problem," he told a view-exchange meeting in Rangpur's Gangachhara upazila on the second day of his visit to the backwater northern district.Gangachhara is a Monga-prone area. The seasonal unemployment and food crisis usually occur during October-November period in the northern region.Focusing on ways of eradicating Monga, Fakhruddin said a committee headed by the commerce adviser ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008Suspension of gas supply from Saturday midnight hampered the city life, mostly in the southern parts, with low pressure of gas in the household stoves and CNG refuelling stations.Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Limited suspended the supply to a major part of the metropolis for 48 hours for repairing the faulty main gas-transmission line. Repair of the line began at 7:30am yesterday at Daudkandi in Comilla.Since early morning, city dwellers found the gas pressure was zero in some places or so low that they could not cook during the whole day, while many of the CNG (compressed ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) yesterday questioned some government officials of different ministries in connection with the Niko graft case filed against detained former prime minister Khaleda Zia and four others.Subject to the court's approval, Khaleda Zia, prime accused in the case, is likely to be questioned at the makeshift jail in early March.“Her statement will be taken at a later stage of the investigation, likely at the beginning of March,” a source close to the investigation told UNB.The anti-graft watchdog filed the case with Tejgaon police station on December 9 last year against Khaleda, detained former law minister Moudud Ahmed, ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008Detained former prime minister and Awami League (AL) chief Sheikh Hasina yesterday said if her party forms the government, reforms and the ongoing drive against corruption would continue uninterrupted as per the law.Acting Awami League President Zillur Rahman quoting Hasina told this to journalists on the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban premises after having an hour-long meeting with her at the sub-jail.A special court gave 10 defence lawyers the permission to meet Hasina at the sub jail. The same court had fixed Thursday for the hearing on charge framing in the Tk 3-crore barge-mount graft case filed against her."If Awami League ...
(read more) Monday, February 4th, 2008Visiting Senior US official Donald Camp yesterday said he would welcome withdrawal of the ban on indoor politics outside Dhaka and reiterated US backing for this caretaker government.He also said the US has certain concerns about the situation in Bangladesh but refused to share them with reporters, saying he would express the concerns directly to the government.Camp, US principal deputy assistant secretary for South and Central Asia, was talking to reporters at a brief joint press conference yesterday with Foreign Secretary Touhid Hossain after a bilateral meeting on his first day here.Asked about his thoughts on the year-long state of ...
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