The New Nation - Internet Edition

Khoka gets bail hours after arrest order: High Court stays graft case proceedings, ACC to appeal

DCC Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka talking to newsmen
after he was granted bail by the High Court yesterday.
FocusBangla

Staff Reporter

The High Court yesterday granted temporary bail to DCC Mayor Sadek Hossain Khoka, just hours after a lower court issued warrant of arrest against him and stayed the proceedings of a graft case filed by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

The Dhaka Metropolitan Session's Judge Azizul Haque accepted the charge sheet of the case at 2 :00pm yesterday and issued the arrest warrant order against Khoka in a graft case.

Khoka appealed to the HC within two hours of the issuance of the warrant of arrest.

Sources said Khoka went to the High court in a microbus without flag and appealed in the HC for bail at about 3:30pm and the HC granted the bail. The HC bail order will remain effective until July 16.

The Anti-Corruption Commission on April 2 filed the case against Mayor Khoka, his wife, son and daughter on charges of amassing wealth "illegally and concealing wealth information".

On July 1, the ACC pressed the charges against him as part of the anti-graft watchdog's sweeping drive against high-profile corruption suspects listed out by the interim regime.

Shamsul Alam, Assistant Director of ACC and also investigation officer (IO), filed the case with the Ramna police accusing Khoka and his wife Ismat Ara, daughter Sarika Sadeque and son Ishrak Hossain of accumulating wealth worth over Tk 17.57 crore which does not match his legal income.

The IO accused Khoka of concealing wealth worth about Tk 10 crore in his wealth statement he submitted to the ACC in December last year.

He is discharging his mayoral duties even after his five-year tenure has expired as the subsequent election date is yet to be announced.

Khoka, also president of city BNP, switched sides in the recent split in the immediate-past ruling party into reformist and Khaleda-loyalist groups amid a wind of interim government-driven changes in the country.

A lawyer for Khoka's wife appealed to the court yesterday for a reinvestigation into the case claiming that the ACC's charge sheet was faulty and incomplete. The court rejected the plea, but ordered a halt to the charges against Ismat Ara due to a stay order by the High Court. Defence lawyers also asked for Khoka's daughter and son to be exempted from the charges.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) will appeal to the appellate division of the Supreme Court against the bail granted by the High Court.

BB should fix single-digit deposit, lending rates for industrialisation: Phoenix Group chairman Deen Mohammad suggests

Deen Mohammad

Shamim Jahangir

Noted businessmen and industrialist Deen Mohammad has suggested that the Bangladesh Bank should fix single-digit deposit and lending rates of interest by formulating a new rule for rapid industrialisation of the country.

Besides, the government should take necessary steps to increase generation of power to boost industrial productivity and economic growth.

In an interview with The New Nation yesterday, Deen Mohammad, who is also the Chairman of Phoenix Group, said that the industrial growth in the country was not taking place up to the expected level due to unusually higher lending rates charged by commercial banks.

Besides, the commercial banks have to pay high rates of interest to depositors, which are virtually affecting the industrial growth in the country.

Deen Mohammad, who was the former chairman of City Bank Ltd, suggested that the interest rate on deposits should be 7 to 8 per cent while the interest rate on lending should be limited to 9 per cent.

"Bangladesh Bank should formulate a law to bring down both deposit and lending rates to a signal digit. It will bring a radical change to the country's economy. In turn, we (industrialists) will be able to present a Golden Bangladesh."

If this step is taken, it will lead to industrial revolution and generate huge employment opportunities in different sectors of the economy, he observed.

The Phoenix Group chairman also expressed the hope that the government should ensure uninterrupted power supply for smooth functioning of the industrial units in the country.

Referring to the acute power shortages facing by the country's industrial units, Deen Mohammad that industrial productivity has gone down alarmingly due to unrelenting power crisis.

"The government should withdraw all the duties and remove complexities to import the machinery for setting up power plants in order to generate required electricity under the private sector. Besides, the government should take necessary steps to invite both local and foreign investors for setting up power plants," he said.

Deen Mohammad, who is a pioneer in the field of leasing financing business in Bangladesh, regretted that the existing laws were not in favour of the growth of leasing companies in the country. "We cannot open any letter of credit (L/C) and collect short-term deposits like the traditional commercial banks," he said.

In this regard, he called upon the government to withdraw an amendment to the Income Tax Ordinance 1984 which states 'No allowance under this paragraph shall be made for a leasing company on such machinery, plant, vehicles or furniture given to any lessee on financial lease.'

"The leasing companies may be compelled to stop their businesses due to huge financial losses incurred by this particular amendment to the Income Tax Ordinance 1984," he cautioned.

Besides, he urged the government to abolish the relevant clause of the Income Tax Ordinance, 1984, which makes it mandatory for all public limited companies registered under the Companies Act, 1994 to pay 20 per cent tax on dividend incomes.

Deen Mohammed was born in a religious Muslim family at Lalbagh in Old Dhaka in 1942. He has one son and two daughters who are also associated with business.

He started his business career with a capital Tk 50,000 in the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) in late 1960s. Later, he set up a steel mill with the financial support from his father Haji Noor Mohammad, also a noted businessman, with a capital of Tk 2 lakh at Tejgaon in Dhaka in 1964.

From the profits of the still mill, Deen Mohammad established The City Bank Ltd, the first private bank in the country with the support from his partners and friends. Later, he set up Phoenix Insurance Company Ltd, Phoenix Finance and Investment Ltd, Apollo Ispat Complex, Rupayan Group, Phoenix Medical Centre Ltd, Rangdhanu Spinning Mills Ltd, Sonargaon Dyeing and Printing Mills Ltd, Eastern Dying and Calendaring Works Ltd and Phoenix Home Textile Ltd.

In 2003, he set up Apollo Ispat Complex spending Tk 400 crore.

Deen Mohammad visited most of the countries across the world and gathered knowledge on how to establish leasing and banking companies in the country, and contribute to the progress and prosperity of the nation.

"I have applied my knowledge and experiences which I acquired from outside the country. It has been enriching my companies day by day," he said.

Asked about City Bank's performance which launched its activities as a first private bank in the country in 1983 and has around four lakh clients, Deen Mohammad, who is also a director of the City Bank, said, "We have launched technology based modern banking recently coming out of the traditional banking system."

He further said that the City Bank has established 'City Bank Foundation' to help distressed people.

Besides, it has been contributing to the beautification of Dhaka City as a part of its Corporate Social Responsibility.

20 dead, 30 injured as buses collide in Comilla

The Ill-fated bus which fell into a road-side ditch
after head-on collision with another vehicle.
FocusBangla

Comilla Correspondent

At least twenty people were killed and another thirty injured yesterday when a bus fell into a roadside ditch following collision with another bus on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway at Illiotganj in Daudkandi upazila under Comilla district.

Witnesses and local police said a Dhaka-bound passenger bus of Starline Paribahan from Feni collided head on with the Comilla-bound passenger bus from Homna and plunged into the nearby ditch along with 40 passengers on board at about 9am.

The Comilla bound bus was also completely damaged.

Being informed, the highway police and firefighters rushed to the spot and recovered 20 bodies including those of two women, from the submerged bus.

The rescue team, with the help of local people, conducted the rescue operation.

Sources said the death toll is likely to rise.

The injured were admitted to Comilla medical College Hospital, Doudkandi upazila health complex and Chandina upazila health complex.

Ten among the departed bodies were identified as Madrasa teacher Habibur Rahman (57) of Nangalkot upazila, Nasiruddin(42) of Chagalnaiyya of Feni and his sister Salma (35), Sadhana Mahmud (55), bus driver Nayan (37) of Fulgazi of Feni, Abul Hasem (45), Akbar Hossain (34), Abdul Mannan (18), Bacchu Mia (50), Alam (30).

The identity of other dead bodies could not be ascertained.

The drivers of both buses managed to flee the spot after the accident. The movement of vehicles on the Dhaka-Chittagonj Highway was disrupted for an hour after the incident. A case was filed with the Doudkandi police station in this connection.

Two members of a family were killed and two others seriously injured yesterday as a pick-up van collided with a motorbike at Sadarghar on Laxmipur-Dhaka highway.

The dead were identified as Mizanur Rahman (48), an employee of LGED office of Subornochar uapzila of Noakhali and his son Mehraj (12).Mizanur's another son Anwar Hossain (10) and daughter Amena (8), were seriously injured.

The injured were admitted at Laxmipur Sadar Hospital.

Police said a pick-up van hit Mizanur's motorbike when going to Subornochar along with his four children riding on the motorbike.

A case was filed in this connection.

At least four passengers of a family were killed and another two critically injured while the microbus carrying them from Dhaka plunged into a roadside ditch on Choumuhani-Feni road at Shurerpul of Begumganj upazil under Noakhali district.

The dead were identified as Nasreen Akhter (32), and her three children, Somaiya Islam (7), Uday (12), and Rahman Islam (6).

The family members on Sunday midnight hired a microbus for going to Maijdee in Sadar upazila to attend a Qulkhwani of their relative.

As the microbus reached Shurerpul, the driver lost its control and the vehicle fell into the ditch at about 6:15am.

Nasreen and her three children died on the spot in the ditch water but her husband Aminul and Aminul's younger brother Shafiqul Islam were luckily unhurt.

Later, police with the help of local people recovered the bodies from the ditch.

The driver of the microbus escaped the accident jumping out from the vehicle.

41 killed in suicide attack on Indian Embassy in Kabul

AFP, Kabul

A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden car into the Indian embassy in Kabul on Monday, killing 41 people and wounding nearly 150 others in the deadliest attack here since the 2001 fall of the Taliban, officials said.

The blast in the heart of the city scattered human flesh and severed limbs in front of the embassy compound, tearing down an outside security office and part of a wall. Charred and bloodied bodies littered a road outside.

"The toll of casualties we have so far is 41 martyred and 147 wounded. Among those killed are six policemen," Afghan interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary told AFP. Many of the dead were Afghans collecting Indian visas. The Indian embassy's military attache and a political counsellor were killed along with two Indian guards. The body of one of the diplomats was flung onto the roof of the embassy and only found hours later, officials said.

Indian ambassador Jayan Prasad, who was not hurt in the explosion heard across the city centre, told AFP the suicide attacker rammed the diplomats' vehicle as it was entering through the gates of the embassy compound.

"The embassy has been blown up badly, the outer structures," another embassy official said on condition of anonymity. "We are walking on rubble."

Five Afghan security guards and two Indonesian diplomats were hurt at the nearby Indonesian embassy, which was also damaged, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was quoted as saying in Jakarta.

The blast was the worst in Kabul since the start of an Islamist insurgency launched after the hardline Taliban were toppled from government by US-led forces for harbouring the Al-Qaeda network after the 9/11 attacks.

The Taliban have carried out a wave of suicide bombings across the country in the past seven years, but a spokesman for the movement denied his group was involved in the Indian embassy attack.

"We have not done it," spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed said.

The militants have previously denied involvement in attacks with high civilian casualties but authorities often blame them, pointing to their record of suicide bombings.

The Afghan interior ministry said "terrorists" had carried out the attack "in coordination and with advice from regional intelligence circles."

Asked if this was a reference to Pakistan, Bashary declined to comment.

The Afghan government has repeatedly accused elements in Pakistan's army and its shadowy intelligence service of supporting to Taliban and other extremists for strategic interests. Pakistan denies the accusation.

President Hamid Karzai blamed the "enemies" of the good relationship between Afghanistan and India, one of the country's staunchest allies as the war-torn country battles the increasingly bloody Taliban insurgency.

He telephoned Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to offer his condolences and said his government would do all it could to find the attackers, his office said in a statement.

India has provided significant support to Afghanistan's efforts to restore order after the ouster of the Islamic extremist Taliban movement, which seized power in 1996.

"Such acts of terror will not deter us from fulfilling our commitments to the government and people of Afghanistan," the Indian government said in a statement.

The United States and European Union led international condemnation of the blast, pledging to stand by Afghanistan as it battles a growing wave of extremist violence in the region that has also seen a wave of deadly attacks in neighbouring Pakistan.

The international community has sent about 70,000 troops to Afghanistan to help them fight the militants but the insurgency has only gained pace, notably over the past two years.

In other violence Monday, a Canadian soldier died after being badly hurt in a bomb blast in the southern province of Kandahar, a Canadian commander said.

A roadside bomb similar to those used by the Taliban killed three Afghan police in the same province and a separate one killed four more in the neighbouring province of Uruzgan, government officials said.

Regional coop needed to tackle climate change

Staff Reporter

The need for regional cooperation for integrated and sustainable management of water resources was underlined at a roundtable in the city yesterday.

Experts at the roundtable called for increasing people to people interaction to compel the political leaders to facilitate such cooperation which is dictated by the unified ecological system that the region shares.

The roundtable on "Melting Glaciers and Rising Seas: Is Space for Regional Cooperation Shrinking?", organised by Bangladesh Paribesh Andolon (BAPA), was held at Women's Voluntary Association (WVA) with BAPA President Prof Mozaffer Ahmad in the chair.

Dr Sudhirender Sharma, Executive Director of Ecology Foundation, India was the keynote speaker at the function while former Adviser of the caretaker government and Vice President of the organisation ASM Shahjahan, former Government Secretary and Chairman of Bangladesh Water Partnership (BWP) Engr Quamrul Islam Siddique, BUET teacher Prof Feroze Ahmed, Prof Jahiruddin Choudhury, DU teacher Prof Asif Nazrul, New Nation Editor Mostafa Kamal Majumder, Editor of Water Watch Digest Gopal Krisna and columnist Rakesh Bhatt of India and General Secretary of BAPA Dr Mohd Abdul Matin took part in the discussion.

The roundtable evoked a debate on whether climate change was taking place or the whole publicity was politically engineered by the rich and powerful countries of the west.

Sudhirender Sharma said that the global warming now being observed has come in a historical cycle and the rich countries are interpreting it to suite their purposes of retaining control on world's resources. He said that through carbon trading the industrialised countries have put the climate thing to be decided by market forces.

In such a context there will be little space for regional cooperation because the market forces controlled by the rich countries would be the key determinates, he said.

He said the problems of poor countries are not identified and initiatives are also not taken to resolve those. "We have to think our problems by our own and have to take necessary measures by our own," he observed.

Prof Mozaffer Ahmad said communication at regional and international levels should be increased to prevent environmental catastrophe.

He regretted that the low-income countries like Bangladesh could not project their real interests due to lack of proper knowledge and research.

The BAPA leader underlined the need for strengthening regional cooperation to face the problems arising from melting glaciers and sea level rise through information exchange and interaction.

ASM Shahjahan emphasised the need for increasing people to people interaction to deal with problems being faced by the countries in the region.

Quamrul Islam Siddique drew attention to the withdrawal of water at the upstream, which made Bangladesh, as a lower riparian country, to face ecological and environmental problems.

He also emphasised the need for increasing regional cooperation to protect the nations of the region from the adverse consequence of the global warming.

Mostafa Kamal Majumder said global warming is being experienced regardless of the debate as to whether the process has come as a historical cycle or due to overuse of fossil fuels for energy.

"For countries of the region it is necessary to undertake collaborative activities to reduce the impacts of global warming," he said.

Abdul Matin held the human being responsible for natural disaster and termed the natural disaster human-created disaster.

Export earnings of 11 months of last fiscal stands at $12,638m

Staff Reporter

Export earnings during July-May period of the immediate past fiscal year 2007-08 stood at US$12,638.86 million, which is 15.33 per cent higher than the corresponding period of previous fiscal year, an Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) release said yesterday.

Officials of the EPB hoped that export earnings in FY 2007-08 might exceed US$14,000 million against target of US$14,500 million.

According to the release, during the July-May period knitwear tops the list with 21.19 per cent growth flowed by woven export. During the time US$4,929.09 million knitwear and US$4,627 million woven item were exported to various countries. Woven export is 4.42 per cent less than the strategic target.

The release said that during the 11 month of the FY 2007-08 frozen food worth US$481.57 million was exported which is 4.4 per cent higher than previous year but 10.47 per cent less than the target.

During the July-May period export earnings from intermediary goods sector rose to US$898.18 million and US$11,74.68 million from manufacturing sector.

However, export earnings in May 2008 fell by 6.27 per cent than the strategic target with worth US$1,269.35 million.

Trustee board to utilise climate change fund: None can say when prices will come down: Aziz

UNB, Dhaka

The government has decided to form a Board of Trustee soon to look after the utilization of the climate change fund of Tk 300 crore allocated in the budget and the upcoming funds from donors. The decision was taken at a high-powered meeting at the Finance Ministry yesterday, with Finance and Planning Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam in the chair.

"The main focus of the fund will be to take adaptation measures," Dr Aziz told reporters after the meeting.

The trustee board would be formed with high officials from the ministries concerned - Food and Disaster, Public Works, and Forest and Environment.

Food and Disaster Management Adviser AMM Shawkat Ali, Forest and Environment Adviser Raja Debashish Roy and senior officials concerned were present at the first inter-ministerial meeting on the issue.

The Finance Adviser said the meeting had decided to keep 66 percent of the fund for spending when necessary, while the remaining 34 percent would be separated as a rolling fund and deposited with a bank to meet emergency needs in the future.

Replying to a question, he said the government has been assured of foreign assistance to fight the climate change, but the assurance has not yet taken a concrete shape. The government will also welcome funds from the bilateral donors.

Dr Aziz said the trustee board would also look after the utilization of the foreign funds, while the government would ensure that the foreign funds through NGOs do not overlap activities in this regard.

He told a questioner that the government is now working on the scientific issues of the climate change to raise in the climate change meeting to be held in London in September this year that would focus on Bangladesh.

The meeting also decided to increase, if necessary, the allocation for the disaster management, he said.

On the alarming price situation, Dr Aziz said: "None can say when the price will come down. It depends on many factors."

He alleged that the media had published or broadcast partially his view about the possibility of declining prices as he told the press few days back that "it's unrealistic to expect that the prices will come down."

Replying to another question, the Finance Adviser said the Ministry of Communication was examining the transport fare while the fuel price here is still much lower than the international price.

"Unless we raised the (fuel) prices we would have to give a subsidy of around Tk 17,000 crore," he said. After raising the price, the national exchequer will have to pay Tk 10,000 crore as subsidy.

Bashundhara chief gets 2-yr for keeping forex illegally

Court Correspondent

A court of Dhaka yesterday sentenced Bashundhara Group Chairman fugitive Ahmed Akbar Sobhan alias Shah Alam, his wife and 3 sons to 2-years' rigorous imprisonment (RI) in a case filed under Section 23 of the Foreign Currency Control Act 1947.

Shah Alam and other fugitive convicts, his wife Afroza Begum, his sons-Sadat Sobhan Tanver, Sayem Sobhan Tanver and Sapoan Sobhan Tanver were also fined Taka 10,000 each in default they will suffer RI for 3 months more.

In the case, the convicts were accused of keeping foreign currencies of 25 countries amounting to 14,32,929.13. Metropolitan Additional Sessions Judge of First Court Md. Abul Bashar pronounced the verdict in his crowded court-room Monday at 2 PM. Earlier he recorded the depositions of 15 witnesses to give the verdict.

Brief prosecution story says : While conducting a raid at the Gulshan residence of Shah Alam on February 4 last year, the Joint Forces including the complainant SI Md. Faruque Hossain tried to arrest Shah Alam. But he was not found at his residence.

However, the Police recovered the foreign currencies including Taka 8,77,885.00 and various documents.

The wife and sons of Shah Alam could not give any satisfactory answer about the foreign currencies and other items. Later on February 19 last year the complainant filed the case with Gulshan Thana of the city accusing the fugitives of bringing the foreign currencies in the country and possessing those illegally to meet some common intention.

Additional Public Prosecutor Md. Abdul Nur Bhuiyan Bablu conducted the case on behalf of the prosecution.

Army civil staff killed after being robbed

Staff Reporter

An Army Civil staff was killed and another critically wounded in an attack by muggers at Khilkhet in the city at dead of night yesterday.

The deceased was identified as Bellal Hossain, 40. The injured, Abdul Latif,42, was admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital(DMCH).

Police said Bellal and Latif came under attack near Khilkhet Footbridge at about 3 AM while they were going to Zia International Airport in a CNG-run auto-rickshaw to

receive Latif's nephew returning home from abroad.

The muggers, already in the three-wheeler, demanded all the belongings of Bellal and Latif and stabbed them indiscriminately on their refusal.

The snatchers then pushed them down from the auto-rickshaw and fled the scene.

On information, police from the Airport Thana rescued them from separate places of the road and took them to the DMCH where doctors declared Bellal dead.

A case was filed with the Airport Police Station in this connection.

HC stays Niko, power plant cases against Hasina

BSS, Dhaka

The High Court on Monday stayed the trial proceedings for two months in the barge-mounted power plant and Niko graft cases against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and others.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Khademul Islam Chowdhury and Justice Masuk Hossain Ahmed issued the order of stay after hearing two separate petitions filed by Sheikh Hasina seeking quashment of the charges in the cases.

She alleged in the petitions that both the cases were brought against her with political motives and to defame her.

She also claimed that due process was also not followed during investigation of the cases and submission of the charge sheets.

The court also asked the authorities concerned by issuing a rule to show cause within four weeks why the cases would not be quashed.

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) lodged a case on September 2 last year, with the allegation that Hasina took Taka 3 crore as kickbacks through eight pay orders for Bangabandhu Memorial Trust from Wartsila Power Development Limited to approve its proposal for installing the plant while the Awami League was in power between 1996- 2001.

The second case was also lodged by the ACC on November 9 last year, accusing Hasina and six others of corruption and abuse of power in awarding a gas exploration and extraction deal to Niko, a Canadian company, that caused a loss of Taka 13,630 crore to the state while her government was in power from 1996-2001.

Fakhruddin in KL: Khaleda may get interim release like Hasina

UNB, Kuala Lumpur

Chief Advisor Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed said here yesterday that his government is ready to extend the same gesture to detained former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia which was shown to another ex-premier, Sheikh Hasina, through her interim release for treatment abroad.

"Sheikh Hasina was released through a legal process for her treatment abroad and the government has issued notification in this regard. If she (Khaleda) desires, same

gesture will be extended to her-there is no hesitation about it," he said at a meeting with Bangladeshi community in the ballroom of Hotel Renaissance tonight.

The Chief Advisor made the remarks responding to a question as to why the government is not setting free Khaleda Zia the way Sheikh Hasina went out of prison.

He said the government wants that competent persons should get elected through participation of all parties in the general election. Caretaker government is no competitor to anyone.

Dr Ahmed said there is no room for confusion about the general election before the end of December this year, and the government extends all-out cooperation to the Election Commission to get there.

"The main objective of the government is to hold a free, fair and acceptable election and transfer power to an elected government," he told his audience of expatriate Bangladeshis.

During the question-and opinion-making session, the audience, representing different classes of Bangladeshi community, including university teachers and traders, asked him about the general election, tenure of the caretaker government, listing expatriates as voters, anti-corruption drive and problems facing the expatriate workers.

About the tenure of the caretaker government, Dr Ahmed said they took oath under the constitutional provision of the caretaker government. "I think it will not yield any result by debating it. We don't want to make the caretaker government controversial," he said.

Dr Ahmed said election rules are being prepared, which would be finalized in a few weeks. If voters and candidates abide by the rules, it would certainly be possible to hold a credible election and elect honest and competent candidates.

He said only few months are left before the elections and the elected government would run the country. Process of the local-body elections started and the general election will be held accordingly.

Regarding registration of expatriate Bangladeshis as voters and giving them voter ID cards, the Chief Advisor said all Bangladeshi nationals deserve to be voter and get ID cards. But the voting right of the expatriate Bangladeshis is a complex subject. The Election Commission has already visited some countries, and hopefully they will be able to reach a decision after examining it.

Asked about continuity of the anti-corruption drive, he said the incumbent government has set up an independent Anti-Corruption Commission. Those who will come to power next will carry on the drive. "If corruption could be hated and the corrupt are not given indulgence, it will be easy to curb corruption," he said.

On soaring prices of essentials, some members of the audience criticized the recent remarks by the Finance Advisor, which stirred a storm at home also.

The Chief Advisor admitted that the prices have gone beyond the tolerable levels and people are suffering. But, he said, in the present world government does not control the market. But the government is sincere to monitor the market prices.

Dr Ahmed said the government is going to enact the Right to Information Act which will enable the institutions to be transparent and people will be able to get information.

About the problems facing the expatriate workers, including in Malaysia, he said the Foreign Advisor had meeting with the Malaysian Home Minister to sort out the problems.

The Chief Advisor said building skilled manpower is the centre of the manpower-export policy and the government is working to rear skilled manpower according to the requirements of the recruiting countries.

On brain-drain from Bangladesh, the Chief Advisor said it could be checked by ensuring good governance in the state system and high-level transparency.

Foreign Advisor Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury and Bangladesh High Commissioner M Khairuzzaman were among others present.