Investigators have recommended that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) files twelve cases against ex-finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal and three other former AL MPs accused of embezzling huge amount of money under the guise of sending workers to Malaysia.
The recommendation came on Tuesday by a three-member investigation team formed by the ACC to scrutinise assets and operations of these individuals.
It recommended filing cases against 12 agencies as part of this syndicate.
These are Obital Enterprises run by former finance minister and his wife Kasiri Kamal, Orbital International run by former finance minister and his daughter Nafisa Kamal, former MP Nizam Uddin Hazari run Snigdha Overseas, Binimoy overseas run by Choddugram Upazilla Chairman Abdus Sobhan Bhuiya and hia wife, 5AM International run by former mp
Lt Gen (Retd) Masud Uddin Chowdhury, Unique Eastern, Catheris International, Ahmed International, BM Traveks, BNS Overseas, Rubel Bangladesh Limited,The Ifti Overseas.
Former MP Nizam Uddin Hazari, Lt Gen (Retd) Masud Uddin Chowdhury, and former Dhaka-20 MP Benazir Ahmed, reportedly sent around 450,000 workers abroad within just one and a half years while Awami League-backed councillor, upazilla chairman and Union chairman were also involved.
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The primary investigation said workers were charged five times more than the government-set cost of Tk 78,990 including passport and health test. They instead collected TK 150000 from 67380 workers.
The average worker paid from TK 500000 to TK5,44,000 to secure a job in Malaysia. Most of the agencies were linked to AL supporters.
When the Malaysian labour market reopened in July 2022, the selection of recruiting agencies was left to Malaysia, with only 25 out of 1,520 Bangladeshi agencies being chosen.
The selected agencies were reportedly linked to former Finance Minister Kamal, his family, other former MPs, and Awami League leaders.
Former Feni MP Nizam Uddin Hazari’s company, Snigdha Overseas Limited, reportedly sent only 100 workers abroad in the first three and a half years after obtaining its licence. However, the company sent approximately 8,000 workers to Malaysia in just one and a half years after markets reopened.
Similar surges were noted in agencies linked to other former MPs and Kamal’s family, with massive profits being made by overcharging workers.
The top agency sending workers to Malaysia, Five M International, managed by former Feni-3 MP Lt Gen (Retd) Masud Uddin Chowdhury, allegedly sent 8,592 workers after markets reopened, a significant increase from the 2,500 workers it sent to the Middle East before.
Ahmed International, owned by former Dhaka-20 MP Benzir Ahmed, was ranked fifth in sending workers to Malaysia. The agency’s activities surged after allegedly joining the syndicate, with 7,849 workers sent to Malaysia, up from just 238 workers before the market reopened.
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