Staff Reporter :
National Board of Revenue (NBR) officials protesting under the banner of the NBR Reform Unity Parishad will continue their “complete shutdown” and “March to NBR” programmes today maintaining demands for structural reform of the tax authority and the resignation of its chairman, Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem.
Confirming the extension on Saturday afternoon, Parishad Secretary General Sehela?Siddika asked colleagues from tax, VAT and customs offices to reconvene outside NBR headquarters in Dhaka’s Agargaon by 10 a.m. Security personnel from the army and police remained on site throughout the first day of the shutdown.
Since Saturday morning, services at all customs houses, VAT circles and income tax zones -apart from international passenger processing – have been suspended. Import and export operations at major gateways, notably Chattogram Customs House and inland container depots, ground to a halt.
Customs officials in Chattogram confirmed that no departments were functioning and clearing and forwarding (C&F) agents had been advised to stay away. A senior officer at Dhaka Customs House, requesting anonymity, reported identical arrangements, with only passenger clearance kept outside the scope of the stoppage.
Speaking at a press conference, unity parishad president Hasan?Muhammad?Tarek?Rikabdar argued that comprehensive revenue reform was impossible under the current NBR leadership.
“Meaningful, sustainable change requires the removal of the chairman,” he said, insisting the shutdown would continue until the demand was met.
Rikabdar criticised a newly formed six member committee tasked with preparing draft amendments to revenue laws, noting that no representatives of the protest movement were included.
He also alleged “provocative” remarks by the chairman and claimed five officers had been transferred outside Dhaka in retaliation for supporting the strike. Nevertheless, he said the parishad was ready to meet the finance adviser “at any time” and urged the Chief Adviser’s Office to intervene in the national interest.
Business leaders expressed alarm at the growing stalemate’s effect on trade. Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Mahmud?Hasan?Khan?Babu told a briefing in Dhaka that export import activities worth roughly Tk?2,500?crore (£185?million) were being disrupted daily. “The scale of the loss demands immediate talks, not a meeting set for Tuesday,” he said.
International Chamber of Commerce Bangladesh President Mahbubur?Rahman echoed the call, urging the finance, commerce and investment ministries, under the Chief Adviser’s coordination, to sit with the protesters without delay. “We appeal to both sides: protect the future of honest and efficient officials and prevent further damage to the economy,” he said, asking officers to withdraw the pen down strike “without pre conditions”.
Leaders of other industry bodies, including the Bangladesh Chamber of Industries, the Leather Goods and Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, and the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association, warned that prolonged disruption could jeopardise annual trade flows worth some US$65?billion.
The unity parishad has announced peaceful marches towards NBR offices nationwide on Sunday, while international passenger services will continue to operate. Business groups, meanwhile, have offered to facilitate dialogue. With customs and tax collections stalled, pressure is mounting on both the protest leadership and the government to find common ground before wider economic costs escalate further.
