Finance Minister AMA Muhith yesterday stressed the need for improving the country’s law and order situation to boost the economy in the wake of recent political turmoil.
“The country’s economic situation has gotten stuck in the face of worsening law and order situation, caused by political unrest, and it would become stable only if the situation improves,” the minister said while meeting with leaders of the Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (Rehab) at his secretariat office.
“Hartals and blockades have appeared as a major threat to the economy as such political programmes paralyse our economic development,” Muhith said.
“I am always in favour of putting a ban on destructive hartals through enacting a new law,’’ he added.
Referring to recent political violence, the frustrated finance minister said, “We don’t need any foreign enemy to destroy us, as we are good enough to destroy ourselves.”
Pointing at the businessmen who support BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, Muhith said they should react to the opposition leader’s activities in their own interest.
In response to a question from reporters, Muhith said the main challenge for the new government would be to restore law and order at any cost to stabilise the country’s economy.
The Rehab leaders, meanwhile, handed Muhith a two-point proposal for the government, demanding a stimulus package to revive the country’s troubled real estate and housing sector.
The realtor platform demanded formation of a Tk3,000 crore fund to provide long-term, low-interest loans to low- and mid-income buyers on an urgent basis. Rehab also demanded rescheduling of existing bank loans, with a one-year grace period without any down payment.
The minister, however, rejected the proposed fund for buyers, but added that it was important to reschedule loans for realtors.
In its proposal, Rehab also claimed that the sale of flats and plots had dropped by 60%, while undertaking of new projects by developers also declined by 75%. Rehab president Nasrul Hamid urged the finance minister to declare the real estate and housing sector as a productive sector.
Hamid said Bangladesh Bank through a circular identified the sector as a non-productive sector, prompting banks and financial institutions to stop financing developers.
Low and mid-income buyers were also not showing interest in buying flats due to high bank rates, he added.