The New Nation - Internet Edition

Teaching now becomes commercial: Aziz Politicisation blamed for poor education quality

Finance Adviser Dr AB Mirza Azizul Islam was present
as the chief guest at the closing session of 3-day
conference on Governance in Education: Transparency,
Accountability and Efficiencies at NEC conference room in
the city on Tuesday. Adviser for Primar

UNB, Dhaka

Finance Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam yesterday said teaching profession has now become a commercial proposition while schools are a springboard to open up coaching centres.

He also blamed "politicisation" of the entire educational system for poor education quality. "We must improve overall governance scenario to improve the quality of education," the Adviser told the concluding session of a three-day conference on education governance at the NEC conference room.

"Unless you can prevent the politicisation by the local government institutions, I'm afraid, the desired results will not be achieved," he said.

The conference was attended by over 80 participants from the central and field level in primary and secondary education, academics, and representatives from NGOs and other stakeholders. UNESCO and Bangladesh National Commission for UNESCO in cooperation with the ministries of Education, and Primary and Mass Education (MoPME) organised the conference on 'Governance in Education:

Transparency, Accountability and Effectiveness'.

Primary and Mass Education Adviser Rasheda K Chowdhury and Asian Development Bank (ADB) country director Hua Du also spoke at the meeting, chaired by MoPME secretary M Mosharraf Hossain.

The Finance Adviser assured full financial support, as instructed by the Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed, to improve governance and quality in the education sector. "But effectiveness of the expenditure must be assured," he said.

About the sorry state of the education sector, he mentioned that the service conditions like promotion of teachers are "determined politically." He said the education system would have to adopt a seniority policy for promotion of teachers discarding only merit-basis promotion.

Dr Aziz added that all the supervisory officers, who are to evaluate such merit-basis promotion, have become politicians and tend to give substantially higher number to teachers in their ACR (Annual Confidential Report) to gain popularity. The 3-day conference has developed a 10-point framework for action in improving governance to achieve better outcomes in education, including decentralisation of authority with accountability in educational management at local level and individual institutions.

The Finance Adviser stressed the need for proper implementation of the recommendations.

ADB country director Hua Du assured donors' support in implementing the recommendations to help improve the governance and quality of education in Bangladesh.

NIKO graft case: Khaleda Zia to be quizzed tomorrow

UNB, Dhaka

Detained former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia will be quizzed Thursday in connection with the Niko graft case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission against her and four others.

"Khaleda Zia, the former Prime Minister, will be questioned Thursday at the makeshift jail. The exact timing of questioning has not yet been fixed," a competent source told UNB.

The investigation team, including investigation officer ACC assistant director Shahidur Rahman will question her and record her statements, the source added.

On February 17, Additional chief metropolitan magistrate Golam Rabbani passed an order to question the former Prime Minister following an application from the IO of the case.

The anti-graft watchdog filed the case with Tejgaon police station on December 9 last year against Khaleda Zia, ex-Law Minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed, former state minister for energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former acting energy secretary Khandaker Shahidul Islam, and Vice-president (South Asia) of Niko Resources Bangladesh Ltd Kashem Sharif.

They were accused of signing the "illegal" deal with the Canadian company, Niko, through corrupt means, inflicting a loss of Tk 10,000 crore on the state during their rule.

Detained former Law Minister Moudud and AKM Mosharraf have already been questioned at their respective jail gates at the end of January in connection with the case.

The investigation team also questioned businessman Giasuddin Al Mamun and former Dhaka Club president Selim Bhuiyan shown arrested in the case. The ACC has also questioned a number of bureaucrats from different ministries regarding the high-profile case. Besides, relevant files and documents have been seized. The investigation team also made some spot visits, including Chhatak gas field.

Investigation into Baropukuria graft case begins

UNB, Dhaka

The Anti-Corruption Commission yesterday formally began investigation into the high-profile Baropukuria graft case filed against 16 people, including detained former premier Khaleda Zia, 10 of her ex-cabinet colleagues and five others.

"Investigating officer ACC deputy director Monirul Haque yesterday formally began the investigation into the Baropukuria graft case with reviewing the relevant papers made available during inquiry," a competent source told UNB Tuesday afternoon.

"The IO will now fix as to what papers need to be seized and which individuals to be questioned in this regard," the source added.

Earlier Monday, the Commission appointed Monirul as the investigation officer to investigate the case.

ACC assistant director Samsul Alam filed the case on February 26 with Shahbagh police station against Khaleda and 15 others for causing a loss of about Tk 159 crore to the national exchequer by awarding the Baropukuria Coal Mine deal to the highest bidder instead of the lowest one.

Former Finance Minister Saifur Rahman, ex-BNP Secretary General and LGRD Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, Jamaat chief and ex-Industries Minister Motiur Rahman Nizami and its secretary general and ex-Social Welfare Minister Ali Ahsam M Mujahid are the heavyweights among the ministers of the previous coalition government sued by the Anti-Corruption Commission.

The other former ministers accused in the case are Health Minister Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Agriculture Minister MK Anwar, Information Minister Shamsul Islam, Commerce Minister Air Vice-Marshall (retd) Altaf Hossain Chowdhury, Telecommuni-cations Minister Barrister Aminul Haque and State Minister for Energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain.

The rest of the accused are former energy secretary Nazrul Islam, former Petrobangla chairman and incumbent BISIC chairman SR Osmani, former Petrobangla director Moinul Ahsan, former managing director of Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Sirajul Islam and Hossaf Group chairman Moazzem Hossain.

Barisal prepares for Advisory Council meet tomorrow

Barisal Correspondent

Barisal city is getting ready for the second meeting of the Advisory Council of the Caretaker Government outside Dhaka scheduled to be held on Thursday at Barisal Circuit House.

More than 1500 extra force in uniform and plainclothes from different law enforcing agencies including special security forces and Presidential Guard Regiment has been deployed in sensitive and key points of the city routes, meeting places and residences of the Advisory Council members.

Law enforcing agency members from outside Barisal city have been accommodated at Zilla, Udayan, Nuria Boys and Halima Khatun Girls Schools of the city. Checkposts have been set up at different entrance points of transports on the roads and highways and residential hotels and public gathering places have also been placed under vigilance.

All types of public gatherings, functions, indoor and outdoor meetings in the city and surrounding areas of the CA's travel route has been banned for Thursday and Friday.

The Chief Adviser will land at Barisal Airport on Thursday and after attending a meeting at Barisal Circuit House will go to Rajapur Upazila of Jhalakathi district. He will spend the night at Barisal Circuit House and leave Barisal on Friday morning.

Storms lash country

Several houses of Dakkhin Geedari village of
Gaibandha district were damaged as norwesters lashed the
country in early hours of Tuesday. Banglar Chokh

BSS, Dhaka

The season's first norwesters lashed the capital city, Sylhet, Comilla and other places in northern and central regions of the country on Monday night, Met office sources said.

The wet and windy weather may continue today. It may start improving from tomorrow, the sources added.

A trough of a westerly low, stretching over Bangladesh from across the north-western border, triggered the seasonal storm in the early hours of Tuesday, the sources said.

In Dhaka after rumblings of thunder and dust storm the rainstorm hit the capital at 3-10AM. However, the winds subsided after five minutues with a gust reaching 74 km per hour.

It caught the citizens virtually unprepared in their sleep, scurrying to shut the windows. Despite heavy rumblings of thunder the showers only totalled eight mm in the metropolis, the Met sources said.

In Sylhet, the met office recorded the storm blowing at a peak of 59kmph lasting only one minute from 4-03AM. The rains totalled seven mm in the north eastern city.

In Comilla the storm starting at 4-30 AM lasted until 5 AM.

It had a peak of 52 kmph.

The Met sources said they also recorded rain at different parts of the country in the early hours of Tuesday. Bogra had the highest 21 mm followed by 12 mm each at Mymensingh and Tangail, 10mm at Dinajpur, nine mm at Syedpur, six mm at Srimangal, five mm at Feni, three mm at Rangpur, two mm each at Jessore and Maijdi.

Tenure of JU VC expires Mar 20

JU Correspondent

Questions have arisen among the teachers and students as to who will be the next Vice Chancellor of the Jahangirnagar University after the tenure of present Vice Chancellor Prof Khandaker Mustahidur Rahman expires on March 20.

As per the University Act 1973, panel election was supposed to be held at least 45 days before the expiry to appoint his successor. But the authorities have failed to hold the election due to the state of emergency.

The senior Professors of the University have already started lobbying with the high officials of the government.

In this situation, the Government has two options before it: to appoint Pro-VC as the acting VC or to appoint a new VC violating the University Act.

However, different groups of teachers have already become active to establish control over the office of the VC. The concerned agencies of the Government are also engaged in collecting bio data and relevant information about the senior Professors.

In the meantime, against the allegation of corruption in the appointment in different sections, the government has already imposed a ban on any kind of recruitment in the university without taking shortage of teachers into consideration.

Visiting some professors and high officials of the University, this correspondent found that names of some professors are highlighted including Pro-VC Prof M Moniruzzaman, Former Pro-VC Prof Enamul Hoque Khan, Prof Golam Hossain of Government and Politics Department and Prof Sharif Enamul Kabir of Chemistry Department.

Prof Golam Hossain told this correspondent the Government should appoint an academician as the VC beyond political consideration for the greater interest of higher education. "If the government appoints such a person, we would be able to make our position even high", he said.

85 pc sanitation coverage achieved

BSS, Dhaka

LGRD and Cooperative Adviser Mohammad Anwarul Iqbal yesterday said the country has so far achieved 85 percent sanitation coverage, which was only 33 percent in 2003.

"Realising the importance of sanitation for sustainable development and poverty reduction, the government has put special emphasis on achieving its target of 100 percent sanitation by 2010" he said while inaugurating an exposition on water and sanitation at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Centre here.

Water Aid Bangladesh (WAB), an international NGO, organised the two-day exposition titled 'WatSan Expo 2008' to mark the United Nations International Year of Sanitation 2008.

Deputy Country Representative of DFID Sarah Sanyahunbi spoke as the special guest while WAB Acting Country Representative M Azahar Ali gave welcome speech and Programme Director Hasin Jahan gave vote of thanks at the inaugural session.

A total of 30 organisations, working for ensuring safe water supply and sanitation across the country, are participating in the exposition.

The adviser underlined the need for making sustainable achievement on sanitation coverage by continuing the mass awareness programme and strengthening the monitoring system.

We need to identify the areas where we are still lagging behind and pockets of unreachable regions to make our efforts sustainable as well as to achieve 100 percent sanitation by 2010, he said.

Anwarul said dependency on ground surface water need to be reduced as excess use of shallow hand pumps is heightening the risk of arsenic contamination putting nearly 20 million at risk.

He said the country had achieved 97 percent coverage of water supply during the past decades, but due to contamination of arsenic in the water the coverage has declined to 76 percent.

The adviser said the government has a plan to bring water from the Jamuna river by pipeline for ensuring safe water supply to the Dhaka city dwellers.

Deputy head of DFID Sara Sanyahunbi said they believe that they have a duty to provide safe water and sanitation to all people of Bangladesh as a development partner and in line with that the DFID has already provided US $ 100 million for the improvement of water sector.

Only setting up of latrines would not be considered as full sanitation coverage, good practice of hygiene also need to be ensured for sustaining the effort, she said.

Azahar said the exposition would create mass awareness about drinking safe water and using of sanitation. The mass awareness and interaction among the organisations working in public health sector will help the government achieve 100 percent sanitation coverage by 2010, he said.

At the fair, the participating organisations would demonstrate current approaches and technologies, which have been practicing in the country for helping the poor and the most vulnerable communities to gain access to basic water and sanitation service, he said.

Three seminars on 'sustainable of water supply and sanitation programme', 'technology in water supply and sanitation' and 'Poverty, Equity and Gender in WatSan' will be held on the sidelines of the exposition, he said.

Later, a colourful rally led by the adviser was brought out from the venue.

Snatcher lynched

Chittagong Bureau

An armed snatcher was killed and his accomplice suffered serious wounds when passersby backed by locals came down heavily on them after at snatching bid in front of Nasirabad branch of the South East Bank yesterday afternoon.

The deceased was identified as Mohammed Babul (35). He was a resident of a village in Patiya while his wounded accomplice was Mohammad Kalam, son of Munshi Mia, of village Mohamuni Pahartali in Rangunia.

Police and eyewitnesses said that the armed goons riding motorbike attacked Mohammed Nurul Haque, an executive of the Jinnurain Trading, in front of Nasirabad branch of South East Bank at about 1:00 p.m. They tried to take away Taka 100 thousand in cash from him.

Nurul Haque had been on the way to deposit the amount of the Jinnurain Trading, a distributor of the Abul Khair Group, to the bank at that time. He, however, managed to catch a snatcher and raised alarm for help.

Security guards of the South East Bank and passersby rushed the spot and caught a snatcher red-handed while the accomplices of the detainee managed to escape.

Frenzied passersby assaulted two snatchers indiscriminately leaving Babul dead on the spot and Kamal critically wounded. At this stage cops rushed to the scene and recovered two motorbikes, a country-made gun and three rounds of live ammunition from their possession.

Later cops took the injured snatcher to Chittagong Medical College Hospital where doctors declared Babul dead while his accomplice had been undergoing treatment at the casualty ward of Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH).

Sub-Inspector of Panchlaish Police station and Investigation Officer (IO) of the incident Mahbub Milky said that three separate cases would be recorded in connection with the incidents.

Biman's slot at JFK Airport likely to be cancelled

BSS, New York

The slot of Biman Bangladesh Airlines at John F Kennedy (JFK) Airport here is likely to be cancelled, if the national flag carrier does not resume its Dhaka-New York flight by March 23, the last day of the existing slot.

Though the Biman does not operate any flight on the New York route, the slot at the JFK Airport has been kept valid so far through applications seeking more time.

The New York office of the Biman said since the process of procuring new aircraft is under way, there is a possibility of restarting the New York flight.

Therefore, the Biman will apply again seeking more time before expiry of the date of the present slot.

Trial of war criminals: Sector commanders urge Govt to take UN help

Deputy Commander in Chief of Liberation War Forces
Air Vice-Marshal AK Khandker addressing a view exchanging
meeting at RAWA auditorium in the city on Tuesday. Banglar
Chokh

BSS, Dhaka

The Sector Commanders Forum yesterday urged the caretaker government to seek the United Nations (UN) assistance for trial of the 1971 war criminals following examples of the several other countries.

"If any country fails to bring those, who persecuted its people to justice that would eventually appear to be a failed state," Deputy Chief of Staff of the Liberation Forces Air Vice Marshal (retd) AK Khondokar told an opinion exchange meeting with journalists at RAWA Club in the city.

He urged the government to seek the UN assistance to try the war criminals as the UN facilitated such trials in the several other countries, including Cambodia.

Liberation War sector commanders, including Bangla-desh's first Army Chief Maj Gen (retd) KM Shafiullah, Maj Gen (retd) CR Dutta and Lt Col (retd) Abu Osman Chowdhury, several other 1971 veterans and former Army Chief Lt Gen (retd) Harunur Rashid, spoke on the occasion.

The meeting was told that the Forum would call for a countrywide blackout for one minute at midnight on March 25, recalling the black night of 25th March of 1971. It will also organise a grand national rally in Dhaka on March 15 to intensify the ongoing campaign for the trial of the war criminals.

Shafiullah said if the government doesn't have any list of the war criminals, it could take it from the Sector Commanders Forum. "Just bring them to justice and the court will do the rest," he said.

Chhatra League for Shibir-free campus

Staff Reporter

The Dhaka University unit of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), the student wing of Awami League yesterday, vowed to drive out all Islami Chhatra Shibir activists from all the dormitories of the Dhaka University.

The call was made from a meeting of the DU unit of the BCL held at the DUCSU building yesterday afternoon.

BCL leaders of the DU unit urged general students and all progressive minded student organisations to work together to ensure a Shibir-free campus.

Sources in the meeting said the BCL leaders would meet the university authorities soon to inquire about the administration's steps taken so far to prevent the Shibir's activists from all of their activities.

Shibir's activities have been banned on the campus by the Paribesh Parishad Committee comprising representatives of student organisations of Dhaka University.

DU BCL General Secretary Sazzad Sakib Badsha said general and progressive students are concerned about the secret activities of the Shibir. "Now it is our duty to ensure that our sacred university will not be polluted by any fundamentalist force," Badsha said.

The DU BCL unit has also decided that they would intensify their movement to free the Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina, the sources said.

The DU BCL Secretary said, "We will accelerate our movement to reach a logical conclusion of the matter."

The meeting also condemned the decision of the jail authorities for not admitting the BCL general secretary Mahfujul Haider Roton despite doctor,s advise. The DU BCL also demanded the release of Roton.

Lending-deposit interest gap Finance Adviser to consider bankers’ offer

Staff Reporter

Finance Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam vowed to consider the whole issue of the bankers' proposal to reduce the lending and deposit interest rate gaps.

According to him, his office would look into the absolute lending rate and the actual gap between the lending and deposit rates, as the bankers decided to cut the lending rate by one plus percentage point.

Businessmen in instant response on Monday to the bankers' rate-cut proposal expressed disappointment and termed it "jugglery with figures."

They said the interest rates on term loans have been mostly below the 15 per cent level.

The Finance Adviser said he would first see the proposal and talk to the Bangladesh Bank Governor on the issue, as the Governor has been assigned to look into the matter.

As per the bankers' proposal submitted to Bangladesh Bank on Monday, the average lending rate would be reduced by one plus percentage point to 14.75-15.00 from existing average of 16 per cent.

However, bankers claimed that it would help reduce the interest rate spread at a desired level within five per cent.

On February 25, the Finance Adviser told reporters that commercial banks in Bangladesh maintain a much higher gulf between lending and deposit rates by any international standard.

The spread is around 10 per cent, as the average deposit rate is 7 to 8 per cent and lending rate 16 to 18 per cent, he added.

'Cooked chicken, eggs safe to eat’

Staff Reporter

Poultry scientists and experts at a press conference in the city prescribed that people could eat as much chicken and egg as they like to meet their protein need because there is no risk of bird flu infection from this cooked food.

There is no record in the world of people being affected by influenza eating poultry meat, they claimed and said that at a time when people mostly stopped taking poultry meet and egg out of fear of avian influenza amid large-scale culling of fowls.

Simultaneously they stressed implementing the existing scientific guidelines for poultry farming to protect the emerging poultry industries across the country from such devastation as witnessed in the country following bird flu scare, they added.

They suggested a staggering figure of loss caused by the destruction of poultry birds and the loss at more than Tk 4,100 crore.

Bird flu virus died in 70 degrees Celsius of heat.

Traditionally we take meat cooked in 100 degrees Celsius in our country. For this reason, without tension or fear the cooked poultry meat and the fried eggs can be taken," said Dr Md A Salek, General Secretary of World Poultry Science Association (WPSA) - Bangladesh Branch and Programme Head of BRAC, as keynote speaker in the conference.

The poultry industry faced immense loss for the spread of avian

influenza virus and 50 per cent of poultry farms already went bust, he said.

The press conference on 'Awareness Prevents Bird Flu Infection in Human Body' was jointly organised by Watchdog Bangladesh and WPSA at the National Press Club yesterday.

Md Mashiur Rahman, President of Bangladesh Poultry Association, said, "Since the guideline was formulated seven years ago, no governments have implemented it for the poultry farmers of the country."

There are some 175,000 poultry farms in the country and in most of them bio-security is maintained. There is enough bio-security at most of the chicken breeding farms, he said.

The government should take proper initiatives through forming an action committee to control the present situation as the great economic loss occurred in the country for the lack of timely steps by the government, he added.

"The committee will give specific recommendations as to how to make the strategy work," said Mashiur Rahman.

Dr Salek said, "The country's rural economy would be hit hard if the poultry industry was not saved urgently. Some 60 lakh people involved in this industry are frustrated."

While mentioning the World Health Organisation (WHO) findings, Dr Salek said the countries like China and Vietnam where people eat raw and uncooked meat remain in risk of bird flu infection but in Bangladesh, people have comparatively less risk of contacting this disease.

"As the number of mix-farming is very less in Bangladesh so the bird flu risk is also less here than in any other countries," he said and adding, "There may be risk if the hands are washed with soap or soda after catering the poultry."

He suggested the people directly involved with broilers and egg business to follow the health rules using hand gloves, masks and aprons to be safe from the scourge of bird flu.