Wednesday, September 20th, 2006In the last two years, Bangladesh received a number of mammoth investment proposals for the energy sector from foreign companies but barring the reputed Tata, all the company profile is as obscure as their actual intentions. This trend continues with the recent revival of an inactive one-year old memorandum of understanding (MoU) with obscure South Korean company Luxon Global. This company wants to invest $ 1 billion in the energy sector and seeks a coal mining licence in the context of the Phulbari mining incident.Based on the success of incompetent Canadian oil company Niko Resources in bagging an energy ...
(read more) Friday, September 8th, 2006Executive Chairman of the Board of Investment (BoI) Mahmudur Rahman yesterday withdrew his defamation case against five eminent citizens, proceedings of which were earlier stayed by a High Court (HC) order.The five are renowned economist and Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan, its Executive Director Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya and CPD trustee board members former adviser to caretaker government Syed Manzur Elahi, former finance minister M Syeduzzaman and former president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) Laila Rahman Kabir.Mahmudur Rahman, also adviser to the energy ministry, appeared before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's (CMM) Court, Dhaka ...
(read more) Thursday, September 7th, 2006The Private Infrastructure Committee (PICOM) yesterday enlisted a proposal for constructing a metro rail system in Dhaka city on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis. The meeting also asked the Ministry of Communications to go ahead with the proposal for an international bidding after final approval. Principal secretary to the prime minister's office Kamal Uddin Siddiqui chaired the meeting, which also enlisted another proposal for constructing a multipurpose complex by Rajuk at Karwan Bazar near Hotel Sonargaon, according to sources. Rajuk was also asked to conduct a detailed study on the project before its kick-off.The proposal for constructing the subway in ...
(read more) Wednesday, September 6th, 2006The Private Sector Infrastructure Committee (PICOM) headed by the principal secretary to the prime minister's office will sit today for discussing the proposal of a private company for constructing a metro rail system in the capital. The Contech Limited, a local firm, has been selected in the pre-qualification bid for constructing the subway and the communications ministry has forwarded the proposal for approval of the committee.The 10-member committee is considered the apex body for approving proposals of constructing infrastructures by private and foreign investors.Secretaries from the ministries of finance, economic relation division (ERD), law and president of Federation ...
(read more) Friday, August 18th, 2006Leaders of the country's business community yesterday expressed deep shock and concern over the arrest warrants issued against eminent citizens and business personalities following a case filed by the Board of Investment (BoI) chief. In a joint statement, leaders of 10 leading business chambers and associations expressed fear that this kind of situation will damage the country's image and investment climate.The warrants were issued against business personalities Syed Manzur Elahi and Laila Rahman Kabir, and eminent citizens Professor Rehman Sobhan, M Syeduzzaman and Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya after BoI Executive Chairman Mahmudur Rahman filed a defamation case against them.The case ...
(read more) Friday, August 11th, 2006The BoI chief has shamed us all by his patriotism. Oh, how he loves Bangladesh. He said he will not allow anybody to harm his motherland and will resist any move to malign his beloved country even if it means taking eminent citizens to jail. Applause! Applause! He said on television on Wednesday that he represents Bangladesh to investors abroad and that any attempt to malign him is to malign Bangladesh. (He measures up to French Emperor Louis XIV here who said "L'Etat, c'est Moi" (The state is me).He called the CPD "Shameless, liars and traitors". On another occasion, he ...
(read more) Friday, August 11th, 2006The High Court (HC) yesterday granted ad interim anticipatory bail to five prominent citizens following issuance of arrest warrants against them in a defamation suit filed by Executive Chairman of the Board of Investment (BoI) Mahmudur Rahman on Wednesday. Upon a bail petition filed by them, a division bench of the HC also issued a rule on the government asking it to explain why regular bail should not be granted in the case. Mahmudur Rahman is also a respondent of the rule.All the five personalities appeared before the court while their counsels moved the bail prayer for them in a ...
(read more) Friday, August 11th, 2006Researchers of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) expressed shock and dismay over the events between Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and a high-level government functionary that have led to the filing of a criminal case involving eminent researchers and citizens.Board of Investment (BoI) Executive Chairman Mahmudur Rahman filed a defamation case against five members of the CPD board of trustees on Wednesday."As a research institute we feel bound to break our traditional silence in a situation that could threaten independent research and dissemination, as well as throttle freedom of speech and free thought," Dr Quazi Shahabuddin, director general ...
(read more) Thursday, August 10th, 2006In a rare incident in the country, a Dhaka court yesterday issued arrest warrants against five prominent citizens who are also members of the board of trustees of an independent research organisation, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), following a defamation suit filed by Executive Chairman of the Board of Investment (BoI) Mahmudur Rahman. The accused prominent citizens are renowned economist also CPD Chairman Prof Rehman Sobhan, its Executive Director Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, CPD trustee board members -- former adviser to a caretaker government Syed Manzur Elahi, former finance minister M Syeduzzaman, and former president of the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce ...
(read more) Thursday, August 10th, 2006Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) yesterday strongly protested some daily newspapers' distorted version of some of the speeches delivered at the press conference on August 8 organised by CPD in response to the speech of Board of Investment (BoI) Executive Chairman Mahmudur Rahman.Some daily newspapers including The Daily Inqilab, Ittefaq, Bangla Bazar, News Today made distortion of the speeches addressed at the press conference held at the CPD auditorium in the capital. These newspapers wrote that CPD Board of Trustee Manzur Elahi termed Mahmudur Rahman as a 'Razakar' or 'collaborator', a CPD press release said."No such remarks were made in ...
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