“A process is underway to appoint administrators for Grameenphone and Robi. We think such a process will discourage foreign investment in Bangladesh,” said BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir
Talking to reporters after a meeting of BNP standing committee members at its chairperson’s Gulshan office, he also said if the administrators are appointed to the GP and Robi, it will create another scope for the government to indulge in corruption.
The BNP leader also said the two leading mobile operators will be badly affected if the administrators are appointed.
BNP standing committee members Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed, Jamiruddin Sircar, Mirza Abbas, Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, Nazrul Islam Khan, Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury, Selima Rahman and Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku were present at the meeting.
On Oct 17 last, the Posts and Telecommunications Division approved a proposal of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) for appointing administrators to mobile operators Grameenphone (GP) and Robi following disputes over outstanding dues.
GP has Tk 12,579.95 crore in dues to the government, including Tk 4,085.95 crore to the National Board of Revenue (NBR), while Robi has Tk 867.23 crore to the government, including Tk 197.21 crore to the NBR alone, as per a BTRC audit.