Archive for October 13th, 2008
Monday, October 13th, 2008BNP will launch a countrywide survey in a day or two to pick out prospective candidates ‘with clean image’ for the December 18 parliamentary election.The party has already appointed 150 professional researchers to do the job.Besides finding suitable candidates, they will prepare a report on constituency-wise strength of the organisation.Some BNP leaders however said the survey will get momentum only after the constituency re-demarcation issue is settled at courts.Primarily, the researchers will confine their work to 150 constituencies. At this time, they will not survey areas like Gopalganj and Rangpur that are traditionally Awami League and Jatiya ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008The Awami League (AL) has finalised draft proposals for amending the party constitution to get registered with the Election Commission (EC) but kept the provisions for associate organisations and foreign chapters.The provisions of keeping these bodies contradict the registration laws laid down in the revised Representation of the People Order (RPO).According to the RPO, political parties willing to get registered shall have specific provisions in their constitutions prohibiting formation of any associated or affiliated bodies consisting of teachers and students, employees and labourers of financial institutions and other professionals. It says the same on having a party's foreign chapters.The AL's ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami yesterday formally asked the Election Commission (EC) to extend the time limit for registration by a week.They said they want to sit with the caretaker government before applying to get registered. Besides, they need more time to complete preparations for registration.According to the current deadline, political parties must apply by October 15 for registration on meeting a set of criteria.The parties prayed for time in separate letters to the EC. There, they said they view registration in a positive light now.The recently revised Representation of the People Order (RPO) has made registration mandatory for participation in ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008The stock market yesterday suffered a heavy decline as fears of fallout from the global financial meltdown ran deep on the home front.In yesterday's trade, retail investors were nervous, paving the way for institutional investors to buy heavily into the market.The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) held a joint news briefing at the DSE premises to calm the market jitters.“Historically, there is no relationship between our capital market and global capital markets,” said Farhad Ahmed, executive director of SEC.DSE Chief Executive Officer Salahuddin Ahmed Khan said investors should not worry too much ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008A Dhaka court yesterday again directed BNP Chairperson and former prime minister Khaleda Zia and other accused in the Barapukuria coalmine corruption case to appear before it on October 16. A number of the accused failed to appear before the court on health grounds yesterday, the date scheduled for their appearance in court.Khaleda Zia, M Saifur Rahman, Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, Motiur Rahman Nizami, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain and Altaf Hossain Chowdhury were not at the court yesterday.Metropolitan Sessions Judge of Dhaka Md Azizul Haque on October 6 directed Khaleda Zia, former BNP minister M Saifur Rahman, Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank were meeting Sunday as the most severe financial crisis since the 1930s threatens to undo recent progress made by developing countries.With donor aid programs under pressure as the crisis bites into budgets, the World Bank estimates that up to 100 hundred million people are at risk of falling into poverty because of higher food and energy prices."The large surge in food and energy prices -- and an associated rise in inflation -- present major policy challenges for most countries, further compounded by the uncertain global conditions as the financial crisis unfolds," an ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008Election Commissioner Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain yesterday said an unforeseen situation would evolve in the country if the upcoming polls were disrupted.“Those for whom the election may be disrupted will be held responsible,” he said indicating latest complications in the run-up to the belated general election.He sounded the note of warning while inaugurating a training workshop at the Election Training Institute at Agargaon.Election Commissioner M Sohul Hussain was also present at the workshop titled 'Election Law and Rules' arranged for the assistant returning officers.Sakhawat said the EC has made political party registration mandatory for democratisation ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008Leaders of the BNP-led four-party alliance yesterday vowed to resist any initiatives to hold a stage-managed election warning that the alliance would not participate in any such election."We will never take part in any election where we will be restricted, but resist such an election," BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain said at a rally at city's Engineers Institute.The four-party alliance organised the rally to press their five-point demand including the lifting of emergency and scrapping of the amended Representation of the People Order (RPO).Similar rallies were organised by the alliance across the country yesterday.Referring to the ...
(read more) Monday, October 13th, 2008Commerce and Education Adviser Dr Hossain Zillur yesterday said his recent meeting with BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia focused on participation of her party in the forthcoming parliamentary elections.“It was basically part of our continued contact to maintain an atmosphere of trust among ourselves. We must all be confident,” he told reporters at his secretariat office.The adviser had a parley with Khaleda at her cantonment house last Friday as her party still remains undecided as to whether or not to go to the polls and raised various demands for creating congenial situation for the election.He described the beginning of ...
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