The New Nation - Internet Edition

BSS, Dhaka

Law and Information Adviser Barrister Mainul Hosein yesterday underlined the need for strengthening the Auditor General's office as the accountability of the people's money paid as tax depends on the empowerment of the organisation.

He urged the concerned officials for accelerating the process of preparing the draft of Audit Act in order to strengthen and empower the Auditor General's office for ensuring transparency.

The Adviser made the call while uncovering the Audit Directorate's Manual 2007 at Audit Bhaban here as the chief guest. Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of Bangladesh Asif Ali chaired the function. Law Secretary Kazi Habibul Awal was present on the occasion. Appreciating the manual, he said success of all jobs depend on proper planning and strategic guidelines on the rules and regulations.

The Adviser stressed developing skilled auditors for ensuring quality and effective audit to maintain transparency and accountability of the government.

Mainul said five of the audit departments of the country out of the total 10 had no manuals earlier and the publication of manuals will help the departments raising their skill and efficiency.

He said the government has constituted the Regulatory Commission on Rules and Regulations as it gives priority to amend and reform the old rules and regulations for infusing dynamism into the administration.

BSS, Dhaka

Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) considering the importance has selected over 50 cases filed during 1999-2006 against professionals, businessmen and officials to bring them to the trial process.

The commission also sued Mayor of Rajshahi Mizanur Rahman Minu and submitted charge sheet in a graft case against BNP leader Harris Chowdhury, Orion Group chairman Obaidul Karim and former whip and reformist BNP leader Ashraf Hossain.

Director General (admin) of the ACC Col Hanif Iqbal told reporters today at his office that the 50 old graft cases would be revived according to the convenience of the commission. Referring to press reports in the last few days that the commission is going to revive about 1,500 cases against leading politicians, he said, " it is true that some cases will be revived. But, the number of such cases is not more than 50."

Urging the reporters to recheck the information before dissemination, the DG said, "I did not see name of any political leader which you the reporters have written".

Actually the persons involved with the cases are people of different professions having corruption allegations, some ACC officials, 12 persons of a business family and tax evaders, he said adding the misinformation may give wrong signal to the people and cause panic among people.

Hanif Iqbal said, the ACC has taken step to file case against Rajshahi Mayor Mizanur Rahman Minu and his wife Salma Shahadat on charge of hiding information about their actual wealth and accumulating wealth beyond their known income sources.

He said, the ACC in its enquiry detected moveable and immovable property of over Taka 2 crore of Minu and his family which they concealed in the wealth statement submitted to the commission. Besides, ACC found wealth of around Taka 3.59 crore of Minu which is disproportionate to his legal income, he added.

The commission also filed a case against Dr Firoz Mahmud Iqbal, assignment officer of former Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia and his wife Imtiyaz Begum for possessing wealth of over Taka 1.47 crore through corruption and misuse of power, the ACC DG said.

He said, Firoz misusing his power and post used two vehicles of LGED without permission of the authorities and three vehicles of Essential Drugs Company Ltd from February 2002 to March 2007 for self and family purposes. Firoz misused Taka 34.90 lakh of the government for fuel cost of the transports.

He said, the commission today approved the charge sheet of the case filed against BNP leader Harris Chowdhury, Orion Group chairman Obaidul Karim and former whip and BNP leader Ashraf Hossain on charge of taking a vehicle from the construction firm to allot the project work of Jatrabari and Saidabad Flyover.

BSS, Dhaka

The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday fixed November 20 to hear the Anti-Corruption Commission's leave to appeal prayer seeking stay of the High Court order that granted ad-interim bail to former prime minister and Awami League President Sheikh Hasina in a graft case.

The date was fixed when the leave petition was moved before Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division Justice Hasan Ameen.

Justice Ameen referred the petition to the full court for hearing without passing any interim order.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) lodged the case with Tejgaon Police Station on September 2 accusing Sheikh Hasina and six others of giving undue favour by misusing power to Wartsila Power Development Limited to install three barge-mounted power plants depriving the lowest bidder. On September 20, the case was included under the Emergency Power Rules (EPR)-2007.

UNB, Dhaka

As they have raised the allegations of cheating in weight and prices by the wholesalers, Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) has urged the retailers to go to BDR-set up wholesale markets in the city to buy goods at fair prices.

BDR has already set up three markets in the city-one in Uttara and two others in Sayedabad and Gabtoli-as part of government efforts to keep the soaring prices under control.

The wholesale market in Uttara is already in full operation while the ones in Sayedabad and Gabtoli are operating partially, a BDR high official who is monitoring the wholesale markets told UNB. Earlier on Sunday, leaders of Small Fish and Kitchen Traders Association at a press conference here alleged that the retailers were being cheated in weight and prices by the wholesalers in the city's wholesale markets.

They demanded setting up of government-run wholesale markets at different kitchen markets of the city to help them run their business smoothly.

The BDR official said there is no scope of any irregularities in selling goods at the BDR-facilitated wholesale markets as they strictly enforce all rules for smooth trading.

UNB, Dhaka

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Salehuddin Ahmed Monday said the Bank released some foreign currency to prevent acute crisis in the exchange market.

"This is to ensure smooth supply of dollar in the market commensurate with the demand," he told reporters, replying to a question whether Bangladesh Bank was influencing the exchange market to appreciate the value of Taka against the US dollar as a strategy to curb inflation. "It's not true the measure is to appreciate the Taka," he said, after attending a scholarship distribution ceremony of Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited at Hotel Purbani.

Businesses have been critical about the central bank's move to administer dollar, which they feared could have an adverse impact on the already affected export sectors. Dr Salehuddin said Bangladesh Bank never pronounced that they are going to inject dollar in the market to help appreciate the Taka and reduce import cost amid rising inflation. The Governor said few banks were facing crisis to meet the import payments and Bangladesh Bank provided some fund for them. The central bank also committed to release US$ 300 million upon requests from the banks to face the dollar crisis in the market.

He, however, admitted that it would not be prudent to depend entirely on the market. "If we do so, the poor people will die for want of food."

Replying to a question, he said the Taka appreciated recently to some extent, but it was too low to affect exports and remittance. Moreover, Bangladesh Bank remained alert so the exports and remittance do not suffer.

Asked about the impact of rising prices of fuel oil, the Bangladesh Bank governor said it would not affect the macroeconomic stability.

BBC Online

Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto says she has ended negotiations with President Pervez Musharraf on a power-sharing agreement.

"We are saying no," to more talks, she told journalists in Lahore. "It is a change from my party's past policy."

The United States has been pushing for a power-sharing agreement to provide more support for Gen Musharraf in his fight against Islamist extremism. But Bhutto said the state of emergency made talks impossible. Bhutto also said she would go ahead with a rally on Tuesday from Lahore to the capital, Islamabad. Her comments come as Commonwealth foreign ministers are due to meet in London to debate a possible suspension of Pakistan's membership of the organisation.

The extraordinary session was called after President Musharraf imposed a state of emergency on 3 November.

On Sunday Gen Musharraf promised to hold elections in January but refused to say when he would lift emergency rule. The Commonwealth meeting is expected to add to the international pressure on Gen Musharraf. When Gen Musharraf seized power in 1999, Pakistan was suspended from the Commonwealth for five years. Pakistan's opposition called on Gen. Pervez Musharraf to lift a state of emergency, threatening Monday to boycott upcoming parliamentary elections unless citizens' rights were fully restored and he stepped down as army chief.

Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, one of the country's opposition leaders, prepared to launch a cross-country caravan to protest military rule. Police ramped up security for her, saying they had received intelligence that a suicide bomber was planning to attack her in the eastern city of Lahore. Benazir Bhutto on Monday urged Pakistanis of all shades to join a motorcade protest against President Pervez Musharraf's emergency rule and vowed it would go ahead even if police try to block her. Musharraf said Sunday he would stick to a January schedule for the election, but set no time limit on emergency rule, which has resulted in the arrests of thousands of his critics, a ban on rallies and the blacking out of independent TV networks.

The measures, he argued, were necessary to ensure "absolutely fair and transparent elections" and to step up the fight against Islamic militants threatening Pakistan.

Bhutto welcomed his Jan. 9 cutoff date for the vote but said Monday that free and fair elections were not "forseeable" under the emergency and with Musharraf still army chief.

"In the given circumstances, boycotting elections could be an option," she told reporters. "We will consult the other political parties."

Raja Zafarul Haq, chairman of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's party, demanded restoration of the constitution, which was suspended under the emergency, reinstatement of top judges purged by Musharraf and the release of detainees - as well as Sharif's return from exile.

"Under the current circumstances it is very difficult to expect there would be fair elections in the country," he told AP Television News. "Within the next week there will be meetings and we will finally decide whether to go for elections or agitation."

In Lahore, about 200 police were guarding the house where Bhutto was staying, with snipers on surrounding rooftops, ahead of her 185-mile protest caravan to Islamabad, due to begin Tuesday. The access road was blocked by steel barricades.

With an escort of dozens of police vehicles, she ventured out to offer prayers at the grave of Pakistan's national poet, Allama Iqbal, and declared to reporters that her caravan was part of her campaign "to save Pakistan."

"I know it is dangerous but what alternative is there when the country is in danger? We welcome the announcement of the election schedule but we think it is too little. People want free and fair elections," she said.

Court Correspondent

Mohammad Nayeem Mehtab Chowdhury, Managing Director of World Tel Bangladesh Limited (WTBL) was sent to Central Jail after a five-day remand.

Investigation Officer (IO) of the case Monday produced the accused before the Court, when Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Golam Rabbani ordered to send him to jail.

RAB arrested Nayeem at his Gulshan residence on November 5 for swindling Taka 46 crore out of different banks and selling fake shares worth Taka 35.55 crore in the name of British Virgin Island World Communication Investment Inc.

On June 11, Word Tel Bangladesh Holding (WTBH) Managing Director Amjad H Khan filed a case against the accused with Motijheel Thana of the city. The accused allegedly embezzled Taka 81 crore in connivance with his accomplices.

Staff Reporter

As a part of its service to mankind for the last 100 years Hamdard Bangladesh is working to setup an university at Gazaria, Munshiganj with an aim to introduce and expand Islamic Medicine namely unani system of medicine.

Managing Director of Hamdard Bangladesh Hakim Md Yousuf Haroon Bhuiyan yesterday met with Education Secretary of the government to discuss over the approval of the proposed university, which is now under consideration of the University Grants Commission.

Poor and meritorious students will get financial help and books and other educative materials will be supplied free of cost. Enrolment of nearly five per cent of the total students will be reserved for the poor and meritorious students keeping provisions for waiver of tuition. Hamdard Bangladesh incurs nearly 25 per cent growth for the last couple of years with yearly turnover of Tk 100 crore. It is selling medicine and providing free treatment through 120 outlets where the price of the medicine is always within the reach of common people, said Kazi Mansur-Ul-Huq, Director Information and Public Relation of Hamdard Bangladesh.

Nearly 3,000 workforces are involved with Hamdard and a total of 1,300 people are directly working with the organization. Hamdard's products are now being exported to UK, Singapore, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, and many other Middle Eastern countries.

Hamdard Bangladesh is serving humankind through Hamdard Foundation, which has a master plan to establish a City of Science at a cost of Tk 500 crore for which 50 acres of land has already been purchased at Gazaria of Munshiganj. The City of Science will comprise Hamdard School, college, medical college and university along with research centers.

The Foundation is operating "Hamdard Unani Medical College and Hospital" at Bogra which also has contribution in student scholarship in every Unani Medical Colleges of the country.

Besides, the Foundation is involved with different mosques, madrasas, charitable institutions, schools, colleges, orphanages, income generating institutions, distressed individuals, unemployed people as well as disaster mitigation through grant making.

The foundation is providing free treatment facilities for the poor and destitute people, contributing different infrastructural facilities for a number of educational and religious institution donating sewing machines to the distressed women for their living, contribute in to overcome the natural calamities.

The Foundation also provides free clinic facilities in the "Bishwa Iztema" to serve thousands of pious people every year.

Hamdard Bangladesh always tried to do its best to help people during any natural disasters. It has distributed relief among distressed people around the country during this years flooding. It has also donated a handsome amount of money in the Chief Adviser's relief fund to help flood affected people.

BSS, Dhaka

Adviser for LGRD and Cooperatives Mohammad Anwarul Iqbal yesterday underlined the need for reviewing the rural development and poverty reduction policies being implemented in the Asia-Pacific region keeping pace with the fast changing world.

"The agrarian reforms and rural development must be conceptualized with the emerging needs and priorities," he said while inaugurating a two-day researchers' meeting at CIRDAP (Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific) auditorium here, which is also the centre's headquarter.

The title of meeting was 'Strategic and Institutional Perspectives of CIRDAP: Revisiting its Role in the Changing Context'. In line with the proposed ministerial level meeting on rural development in 2009, to be hosted by Bangladesh, CIRDAP has initiated country level studies covering all of its 14 members countries, for reviewing the previous policies and programmes on rural development and poverty alleviation and identify policy level issues and concerns.

Researchers and country representatives of the member states, participating the meeting, will interact on the basic approach, parameters and format of the county level study and finalise their design which will be placed at the ministerial level meeting. Rural Development and Cooperative Division Secretary Muhammad Nazrul Islam chaired the inaugural session while Director General of CIRDAP Durga P Paudyal delivered speech of welcome.

Consultant of CIRDAP Dr S Narayan briefed about the research meeting and Director Research of the centre Dr Nasreen Khandker gave vote of thanks. Anwarul Iqbal said, despite of remarkable achievements with regard to agriculture, rural development and poverty alleviation over the past few decades in the countries of the Asia-Pacific region, it still holds nearly three quarter of the world's poor.

While some countries have been successful in reducing poverty, there were considerable disparities between rural and urban areas, remote and inaccessible regions, and between gender and ethnic communities, he said.

Staff Reporter

Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP) started a two-day long researchers' meeting on 'Strategic and Institutional Perspectives of CIRDAP: Revisiting its Role in the Changing Context' yesterday at the headquarters of the centre in Dhaka.

Researchers from all the 14 member countries will review the past policies and programmes on rural development and poverty alleviation and identify policy level issues and concerns.

LGRD Adviser Mohammad Anwarul Iqbal inaugurated the meeting as chief guest and launched a publication of CIRDAP on 'Agrarian Reform and Rural Development: Sharing Experience from the Philippines'. The Adviser said despite remarkable achievements in rural development and poverty alleviation the Asia Pacific region contained almost three quarter of the world's poor and the gap between poverty and prosperity was widening.

He hoped that the consultants and researchers would finalise a design by interacting basic approaches, parameters and formats of the country level study and the design would be more helpful for poverty alleviation and rural development.

Muhammad Nazrul Islam, Secretary, Rural Development and Co-operatives Division chaired the inaugural ceremony while Dr Durga P Paudyal, Director General of CIRDAP, Dr S Narayan, Consultant of CIRDAP and Dr Nasreen Khundkar, Director, Research of CIRDAP spoke at the meeting.

Md Nazrul Islam said, Japan has consented to facilitate CIRDAP both by funding and strategic support.

BSS, Dhaka

The fact-finding committee that has been working for detecting fake students at the Dhaka University (DU), yesterday identified 33 more students, who got admitted through fraudulent means.

The committee at its eighth meeting with Pro-Vice-chancellor Professor AFM Yusuf Haider in the chair identified the fake students.

Of the 33 fake students, 30 got admitted to the Public Administration Department and three to the Applied Chemistry Department. The committee will send showcase notices to them, according to sources. The fact-finding committee also recommended cancellation of admissions of earlier identified 13 more fake students by the university syndicate, the sources said.

The committee, headed by Pro-VC Prof AFM Yusuf Haider, has so far identified 180 fake students since its formation on October 10, 2006.

Narsingdi Correspondent

At least six persons including a woman were injured by robbers and goods worth about Tk 13 lakh looted in separate incidents of robbery at Narsingdi on Sunday.

Our correspondent said the robberies occurred at village Chadda Paika under Madhabdi municipality in Narsingdi district and at Shibpur sadar upazila proper.

At the village, Chadda Paika intruder attacked Ahmed Hamid's house and looted gold ornaments, cell phones and cash, which valued more than Tk one lakh. By this time house owner's daughter Shilpi, 18 obstructed the robbers. She was chopped with spiky weapon.

Besides UP member Rup Mia was injured by throwing cocktails. Shilpi and Rup Mia were admitted to a local clinic. Another two incident occurred at the house of Golam Mohammed and Bashir Ahmed Babul at Kotowali Char and Sibpur sadar upazilla proper. In these two-separate incidents Ahmed Dewan (65), Hazrat Ali Dewan (35), Alam Mohammed Dewan and Bashir Ahmed Babul were injured. At the same time properties were looted including gold ornaments of 28 tola and worth about Tk 12 lakh. Injured persons were admitted to the local health complex and Dhaka Orthopedic Hospital.