BNP Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Tuesday strongly criticised the interim government for keeping a provision in the proposed budget that allows the whitening of black money.
“You (interim govt) have presented a budget of Tk 7 lakh 90 thousand crore. What is the difference between this budget and Sheikh Hasina's? She also allowed black money to be whitened, and now you have given the same opportunity,” he said.
Rizvi made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a distribution event of Eid essentials among underprivileged people, organised by the Jatiyatabadi Tanti Dal in front of BNP's Nayapaltan central office, marking the 44th death anniversary of BNP founder Ziaur Rahman.
Referring to Nobel laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus heading the interim government, he said people are questioning why wrongdoing would be carried out under such an administration.
Rizvi said the looters and bank robbers, who hold vast amounts of black money, are now being given the opportunity to legalise it under the government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus.
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The BNP leader questioned how the interim government would ensure people’s welfare when it had not allocated adequate funds for health, education, and other important sectors, including the social safety net.
Of the total Tk 7. 90 lakh crore budget outlay, he said 23 percent would go solely towards the salaries of the administration. “So what have you allocated in the social safety net for the poor people?”
Rizvi said the government allocated less to vital sectors like health and education. “We need adequate allocation for these sectors to ensure quality education and minimum healthcare.”
The BNP leader said Dr Yunus has spoken on many global platforms about various issues and has always advocated for the well-being of the poor.
“He (Yunus) once said, ‘I will send hunger and poverty to the museum’. Now we see that a scope is being given to whiten black money through his hands,” Rizvi said.
He said every pro-democratic political party in the country extended its support to Dr Yunus with the hope that he would steer the country in the right direction.
The BNP leader questioned why the budget under Dr Yunus’ leadership lacked clear measures to reduce inflation and prevent the poor from becoming even poorer.
Budgetary allocation for education and technology remains almost unchanged
Instead, he pointed out, the burden would increase on the middle class, lower-middle class, and low-income people if the budget is implemented. “This is what economists are saying, not what I am saying.”
Rizvi said BNP and other parties want to see Bangladesh move in the right direction and the government holds a free, fair, and credible election. “But when asked about the timing of the election and how long the delay would be, the advisers remained silent.”