Opposition leader and Jamaat-e-Islami Amir Dr. Shafiqur Rahman said migration syndicates are threatening him for demanding in parliament that the cost of sending workers to Malaysia be reduced to 85,000 taka.
Speaking at a post-budget press conference at the LD Hall of the National Parliament on Wednesday (July 1), he said he will not be intimidated by any syndicate for speaking on behalf of the people.
“I raised the demand in parliament that sending people to Malaysia should cost 85,000 taka. Because of this, many syndicates have become angry and are threatening me,” he said. “Did I name any specific syndicate? Did I mention any specific recruitment agency? Then why are some people so upset?”
He said migration syndicates do not operate only in the Malaysia corridor but exploit poor Bangladeshis heading to destinations worldwide, leaving them destitute and, in many cases, stranded without valid documentation.
On the withdrawal of proposed taxes on small grocery shops, Dr. Rahman said the opposition’s stance against the advance tax on marginal traders was vindicated. “We spoke against it, and it has been withdrawn,” he said.
He also advocated changing the fiscal year from the current July-June cycle to January-December. He said under the current system, only 42 percent of the Annual Development Programme is spent in the first nine months, with 50 percent crammed into the final three months — when monsoon rains wash away public funds through waste, corruption, and rushed spending.
“We said it should run from January 1 to December 31, in line with our weather and seasons. At least then, when the development monster wakes up in the last three months, our resources won’t float away in floodwater,” he said.
Dr. Rahman reiterated Jamaat’s election pledge that none of its elected members — whether MPs or ministers — would purchase tax-free vehicles or accept government plots.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report