Staff Reporter :
Leaders of Country’s top business and export organizations have urged the political parties to stop mindless violence across the country to keep the wheel of the economy moving.
Denouncing the countrywide arson attacks, they also urged the political parties to take steps against violence and arson attacks, stop killings, ensure safety and security of ready-made garment [RMG] sector and keep the Dhaka-Chittagong Highway free from blockade and hartal.
In this backdrop, they submitted separate memorandums to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia seeking their attention to ensure trade-friendly atmosphere.
A team of businessmen led by Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association [BGMEA] President Atiqul Islam handed over the memo to an official of the PMO on Wednesday afternoon. In a memorandum submitted to the PM, the business leaders sought prime minister’s steps against those carrying out violence destroying the trade-friendly atmosphere of the country and to ensure safety and security of ready-made garment [RMG] goods and business.
The BGMEA Chief also submitted a similar memorandum to the BNP Chairperson’s Gulshan office urging her to keep RMG sector out of political programmes like hartal and blockade.
In the memorandum to BNP Chairperson, the BGMEA Chief urged Khaleda Zia to keep Dhaka-Chittagong highway out of the hartal and blockade for the “greater national interest”.
Earlier in the morning, about 50 top business and export organisations of the country formed a human chain in front of BGMEA Complex protesting 20-party alliance’s hartal and blockade programme. Different organisations, including BGMEA, Bangladesh Textiles Manufacturers and Exporters Association [BTMEA], Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association [BKMEA], joined the programme under their own banners at 10:30am.
Protesting the ongoing violence, the business leaders sought an end to the anarchy to keep the wheel of the country’s economy moving. In the human chain, the BGMEA chief Atiqul Islam also urged the politicians to relieve the businesspeople of the ongoing destructive and violent politics as the political instability is taking its heavy toll on the export sector and the overall economy. “We, the businessmen will be bankrupt soon if the countrywide blockade is prolonged. The overall order for RMG items from foreign buyers has already decreased by 30 percent due to unrest,” he said.
“Resolve the political impasse and ensure a healthy, sound business environment. Do your politics protecting the industry?” he said raising a question.
Atiqul Islam said the country will survive only when the industry will remain functional and the economy will remain vibrant if the industry survives. “We appeal to the politicians, please protect the industry from destruction.”
Revealing facts that RMG export orders have marked a fall by 30 percent due to the current political instability, the BGMEA Chief urged the politicians to relieve the businesspeople of the ongoing destructive and violent politics as the political instability is taking its heavy toll on the export sector and the overall economy. The leaders said they do not want such politics which is dominated by violence as they look for peaceful political programmes free from violence.
They said the business community does not want Bangladesh to be engulfed with such inhuman activities. President of the Exporters Association of Bangladesh [EAB] and former BGMEA President Abdus Salam Murshedy, BGMEA Acting President Aslam Sunny, BARVIDA President M Habibullah Dawn, former Caretaker Government Adviser Tapan Chowdhury, BGMEA first Vice-President Nasir A Chowdhury, among others, spoke on the occasion.
Meanwhile, the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bangladesh Chamber of Industries, International Chamber of Commerce, Bangladesh, American Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Bangladesh Employers Federation, Bangladesh Association of Banks, Bangladesh Insurance Association, Bangladesh Bus Truck Owners Association, Bangladesh Cotton Association, Bangladesh Garment Executive Association also expressed their solidarity with the programme.
Vice-President of FBCCI Helal Uddin said, it is high time to ban hartal. Because, it is a harmful political programme. “We have been demanding to ban it for 20 years,” he said. FBCCI first Vice-President Monwara Hakim Ali was also present at the human chain.
The country suffered a colossal economic loss of Tk 36445.76 crore in the first 16 days’ countrywide hartal and blockade programmes this month, according to DCCI.
The country suffered a colossal economic loss of Tk 36445.76 crore in the first 16 days’ countrywide hartal and blockade programmes this month, according to Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).
