Staff Reporter :
On Friday, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) criticized the proposed national budget for the fiscal year 2024-25, alleging it would further expand opportunities for corruption.
“This budget is black money-friendly. It essentially promotes the widespread use of black money. It outlines how black money can be laundered, corruption expanded, and illicit wealth generated,” said BNP Secretary-General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir during a seminar in the capital.
The event, held at Dhaka Reporters’ Unity (DRU) Segunbagicha, Dhaka, was organized by “Sonali Dal,” a group of faculty members from Bangladesh Agricultural University, to commemorate the 43rd death anniversary of former president and BNP founder Ziaur Rahman.
The BNP Secretary-General criticized the budget for not addressing the needs of ordinary working people or improving job opportunities. “There’s no point discussing this budget. Look at the cartoon on the front page of a major daily, where a massive elephant crushes numerous ordinary farmers, workers, and hardworking individuals under its weight,” he commented.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam also condemned the government’s budget allocation to what he described as unproductive sectors, which he believes will lead to further misappropriation of public funds.
He specifically criticized the government for increasing taxes on capital machinery. “Increasing tax on capital machinery sends a clear message—there should be no new industries or factories here, hence no need to import machinery,” he argued.
The BNP leader highlighted the tough conditions faced by people due to a lack of employment and income opportunities, noting that even small business owners and workers in Dhaka are relocating to rural areas due to job shortages, only to find dire conditions there as well.
He lamented that the budget offers no benefits for common people and farmers and claimed that positive change is unattainable as long as the current government remains in power.
“All statistics from this regime are false and fabricated. With such unreliable data, how can we plan effectively? Corruption scandals like those involving the former IGP Benazir are rampant… It’s as if Benazir is omnipresent now,” Mirza Fakhrul concluded.