Time to rebuild Bangladesh after fascism: PM Tarique Rahman
Prime Minister Mr. Tarique Rahman has said Bangladesh must now rebuild itself after being freed from fascist rule, stressing that national interests must come before personal interests. Speaking at a revenue conference at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in Dhaka yesterday morning, Mr. Tarique said the government had inherited a fragile economy and was trying to cut unnecessary expenditure while ensuring spending in essential sectors. He said the success of the National Board of Revenue (NBR) was crucial to the government’s development plans.
He urged revenue officials to make the NBR a trusted, taxpayer-friendly institution and said the government wanted to strengthen public confidence in tax administration. He said the NBR had been discredited during the previous 15 years through arbitrary revenue collection, favouritism and actions driven by personal or political interests. Mr. Tarique said revenue officials must develop expertise in digital economy, e-commerce, transfer pricing, international taxation, trade-related financial crime, money laundering and artificial intelligence to address changing global economic challenges.
He said Bangladesh’s tax-to-GDP ratio remained below its potential and urged the authorities to expand the tax base rather than repeatedly increasing the burden on existing taxpayers. He called for a modern, digital and data-driven tax administration and said VAT administration should not create unnecessary obstacles for businesses. “People should not fear the NBR; rather, they should trust it,” Mr. Tarique said, urging officials to put national interests above personal interests. He assured government officials that the government would support them in working safely and comfortably for the country’s development.
He said revenue collection had remained positive from mid-February to the end of June, proving that revenue officials could deliver. “We all need patriotism and sincerity,” he said, calling for a strong revenue system for a prosperous Bangladesh. Earlier, Finance and Planning Minister Mr. Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury and Prime Minister’s Finance and Planning Adviser Mr. Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir also spoke at the conference.
Later, at the Prime Minister’s Office at the Secretariat, Mr. Tarique formally launched a programme to distribute 20,000 raincoats among tea garden workers in Sylhet division to protect them from adverse weather. Launching the programme by handing raincoats to 10 tea workers from Sreemangal and Kamalganj, Mr. Tarique said many major problems could be solved if everyone contributed a little. He assured full government support to private-sector humanitarian and social initiatives.
Under the programme, initiated by the Ministry of Social Welfare, 20,000 raincoats will be distributed among tea workers in tea gardens in Sylhet, Moulvibazar and Habiganj. The Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) is providing 10,000 raincoats, Chevron Bangladesh 5,000 and Pangu Ghar Group 5,000. Private-sector representatives said supporting disadvantaged and working people alongside business activities was part of corporate social responsibility. They pledged to continue working with the government to improve the living standards and workplace safety of tea workers and other marginalised communities.
Mr. Tarique also met the workers and received tea leaves as a goodwill gift from Santuki Roy, a worker at Mazdihi Tea Garden in Sreemangal. Among those present were Social Welfare and Women and Children Affairs Minister Prof. Dr. A Z M Zahid Hossain, Commerce, Industries and Textiles and Jute Minister Mr. Khandaker Abdul Muktadir, Labour and Employment Minister Mr. Ariful Haque Chowdhury and State Minister for Social Welfare Ms. Farzana Sharmin.
