Staff Reporter :
Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed, adviser to the ministries of finance and planning in the newly formed interim government, pledged on Saturday to work towards enhancing the lives and livelihoods of the people of Bangladesh.
Speaking to reporters after assuming office at the Ministry of Finance in the Bangladesh Secretariat, Dr. Ahmed outlined the government’s priorities and objectives.
“We aim to establish a fair and just society. Our goal is to increase people’s incomes while reducing inflation. We are committed to doing our best to improve the lives and livelihoods of our citizens,” Dr. Ahmed said.
In response to questions about the formation of a banking commission, Dr. Ahmed emphasised the government’s immediate priorities.
“Our focus is on restoring public trust in the banking sector and resuming full operations of the central bank. After that, we will address the need for banking reforms,” he stated.
Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed, who previously served as the governor of the Bangladesh Bank, expressed confidence that it would not take long to resume the basic operations of the banking sector.
“We have not derailed the banking operations, but they have slowed somewhat. “We will work to enhance the pace and efficiency of these operations,” he explained.
Addressing concerns about inflation, which has impacted the lives of many due to global economic instability and domestic issues, Dr. Salehuddin acknowledged both macroeconomic challenges and shortcomings in development strategies.
“There are flaws in our development policies that have prevented marginalised people from benefiting fully. We will work to address these issues,” he said.
Dr. Salehuddin’s remarks reflect the interim government’s commitment to addressing economic challenges and improving conditions for all Bangladeshis.
He said that although growth was there in various sectors, it was not reaching the targeted beneficiaries.
When asked about the submission of a resignation letter by Abdur Rouf Talukder as the central bank governor on Friday, Dr. Salehuddin said that he would not take a decision solely in this regard right at the moment since it was a sensitive matter.
He alleged that although the rules and norms of the central bank were of international standard, they were not always followed by the concerned authorities.
He said that they would be strict enough to restore discipline in the operations of the central bank and in the banking sector.
Regarding the allegations of syphoning off money abroad, he said they are very much aware of it, although it requires the necessary information to deal with the matter through a process. ‘But we’ll definitely act on it,’ he added.
Asked about the possible steps to deal with the growing trend of non-performing loans (NPLs), the adviser said that the interim government was sincere enough to deal with this matter.
Since the interim government has taken charge at a critical juncture of the nation following the recent massive popular movement by the student-led common people centring the quota reform issue, he said, their immediate concerns are to restore the law and order situation. ‘If we can’t fix it, then our pace of operations will slow down,’ he said.
He said that restoring law and order not only meant bringing discipline to the roads and highways but also resuming operations at banks and ports in full swing.
‘But, definitely, we’ll try to address the persisting challenges in the macroeconomy, including inflation.
Immediately, our main focus is that if the pace of the economy is slowed down for some reason, then we can restart it like a vehicle engine.
But if it comes to a full halt, then it would take much time to start it again, which would also consume much energy. We’ll try to expedite the pace by motivating all concerned,’ he added.
The finance adviser said that it was a big advantage of the country that it has an endless vigour of general people, although there were some mismatches in the leadership and management of some people.
‘We’ll have to immediately address the challenges and thus move forward so that we can create a smooth path for those who will come to the leadership in the future.’
Seeking wholehearted support from all concerned, including the media, Dr. Salehuddin also welcomed proactive suggestions from all concerned stakeholders, including the media.