Bangladesh Economic Association on Monday said implementation of the budget proposed for the fiscal year 2013-2014 depends on effective handling of 14 issues that include giving a boost to foreign and private sector investment and bringing pace in ADP implementation with quality.
The economic think thank, however, said the ultimate success depends on political stability, overall improvement in the law and order situation, effecting handling of graft-related issues and improvement in the energy sector.
‘It won’t be impossible to achieve the proposed targets (on various sectors) if there’s no major deviation from the above favourable factors,’ BEA general secretary Towfique Ahmed Chowdhury said.
He came up with the observations at a post-budget press conference at its conference room in the afternoon.
Towfique read out a detailed paper at the press conference in presence of BEA president Abul Barkat and other committee members were present.
Towfique laid emphasis on releasing foreign aid and loan now in the pipeline, productive use of the remittance sent by expatriate Bangladeshis, adequate credit supply to the private sector from the banking sector, especially for the industrial sector, reducing dependence on the banking sector for addressing budget deficit and expansion of tax net for successful implementation of the proposed budget.
On black money issue, he said the size of the black money amount is about Tk 5 lakh to 7 lakh crore. ‘It’s true. The money should be recovered.’
He said since the size of black money is huge its investment should be allowed in the infrastructure sector — roads, bridges and power plants and industrial sector — with a set of tough conditions.
‘The government can publish a whitepaper, and it can also form a commission. We hope there’ll be directives regarding the commission and whitepaper in the final budget,’ Towfique said.
He said the finance minister’s prescription for black money investment in the housing sector is not a good prescription. ‘For solving the housing sector crisis, it’s not a good prescription.’
Abul Barkat said those opposing the construction of Padma Bridge, the country’s largest-ever infrastructure project, with own funding are World Bank agents.
‘Those who are saying building Padma Bridge with own resources will hurt Bangladesh, I tell them clearly, they’re World Bank agents,’ he told the press conference.
Barkat also sharply criticised those who claimed that Padma Bridge construction with own financing will shrink allocation in the social sector — education, health and others.
He said construction of the Padma Bridge with own resources could be the best scope for national solidarity.
Construction of the Padma Bridge is surely possible with own financing, he said outlining how it is possible. ‘We’ve identified 12 sectors from where an additional amount of Tk 94,748 crore can be mobilised,’ Abul Barkat said.
He said 46 persons in the country each pay income tax worth Tk 1 crore or above a year. ‘But, in our calculation, there are 50,000 people in the country who can pay each income tax worth Tk 1 crore or above annually. So, Tk 50,000 crore may come from them.’
Responding to a question, he said people know the 46 persons and the 50,000 others who can pay income tax worth more than Tk one crore each per annum.
Barkat also said some Tk 3,000 crore can be earned as revenue from tobacco sector but the finance minister could not do it. ‘The lobbying is very strong.’
He also said the substitutes to breast milk is simply poison. ‘We asked to stop the import of infant formulas. But the big importer of it is the owner of a newspaper.’
-With New Age input
