Leader of the opposition Raushan Ershad has told parliament that there were uncertainties over achieving revenue and GDP targets in the next fiscal year because of slow investment and an unstable banking sector.
While discussing the budget for the upcoming 2015-16 budget, she said: “Politicians are being recruited in the board of directors of the banks. They provide loans and waive interest rates on political consideration. The banking sector will have to be brought under regulation as people are losing confidence on it.”
She also demanded that the government doubles the allocation for the health sector labelling the current allocation of Tk12,695 crore too low as most of the 160-170 million people in the country belong to the middle and lower-middle income groups.
The former first lady of the country urged the government to increase existing 30-year age limit for getting government jobs to 35 years.
Raushan also called upon the government to withdraw the VAT imposed on private universities and medical colleges, the tax on farms, the tax at source on the readymade garments sector and the supplementary duty on mobile phone calls.
She said the word Birangana – used for describing women raped during the 1971 Liberation War – should be omitted; instead they should be called freedom fighters.
Earlier in the day, Raushan’s husband and Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad took part in the budget discussion.
Addressing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, to whom he is a special envoy, Ershad said: “Want to build a digital Bangladesh? But there is not a single university [from Bangladesh] among the top 100 universities in Asia. The allocation for the education sector is poor. If people are not educated then how human resources will be developed?”
The former military ruler also said that unemployment is one of the biggest headaches for the country right now. “Millions of students are passing from the universities every year. These educated young people are like time bombs. They will not sit idle. They will explode one day.”
Regarding election, Ershad said: “You [PM] have given many things to Bangladesh. You have nothing to lose. Questions remain after any elections ... Debates can be erased by amending the election system.”
