Proposed budget to ensure welfare of people: Lawmakers

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SANGSAD BHABAN, June 25, 2019 (BSS) – Lawmakers today said the proposed budget for 2019-20 fiscal will ensure the welfare of the people through eliminating poverty aiming to turn the once under developed country into a prosperous one within stipulated time.

Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal on June 13 in the Jatiya Sangsad unveiled a Taka 5,23,190 crore national budget for 2019-20 fiscal setting the GDP growth target at 8.2 percent and delineating a set of programmes to transform the country into a role model of modern and welfare state by 2041.

Taking part in the general discussion for the seventh day on the national budget in the Jatiya Sangsad, the lawmakers said the proposed budget will ensure peoples welfare through creating huge employment, cutting poverty and build a medium income country by 2021 and a developed on by 2041.

On the implementation of the budget, senior Awami League leader and former minister Mohammad Nasim said most of the countries like Vietnam and Malaysia can easily implement their budget, adding that but Bangladesh could not implement the budget fully due to the bureaucratic complexity.

He urged the government to reshuffle the bureaucracy as a section of pro-BNP-Jammat bureaucrats are in the administration changing colour which needs to be find out, adding that they are trying to create difficulties in different phases from inside the government.

Terming the proposed budget as a dream fulfilled and development budget, Forest, Environment and Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin said: “The proposed budget will transform the country into a prosperous one as soon as possible by ensuring the welfare of the people.”

“Bangladesh has already graduated to a middle income country from it’s earlier position of least developed one through fulfilling the criteria of per capita income of 1200 US dollar set by the United Nations,” said the minister.

Participating in the general discussion on budget, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi said “we have no alternative to placing such a mega budget as the country has to overcome the possible economic pressure after the WTO graduation in 2024.”

Regarding the progress of the country as positive, the commerce minister said all the economic index of our development forecasting that we are progressing ahead and we are in right track.

On the proposal of whitening of the black money in the proposed budget, the commerce minister said the proposed budget has imposed a 10 per cent tax on all black money holders which need to be revised.

“The proposed budget will pave the way to build a prosperous and welfare state which was a dream of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman,” former Housing and Public Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain said.

On the budget outlay of Taka 74,367 crore for the social welfare ministry which is 14.21 per cent of the total budgetary allocation and we hope that the budget will fulfill the expectation of 16 crore people of the country, said Social Welfare Minister Nuruzzaman Ahmed.

Highlighting the socioeconomic development, former Primary and Mass Education Minister Mostafizur Rahman said the whole world has acknowledged that Bangladesh is moving forward under the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

He said BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir claimed that he did not take oath as an elected member of the present parliament what he said ‘as illegal’. “But, his party lawmakers have joined the parliament. Is not it a double standard?,” Mostafizur questioned.

“Earlier, BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia said all the budgetary allocation was looted. If we have looted the allocation, how the tremendous development is taking place in the country. Electricity is being reached at the doorsteps of every person. Padma Bridge project will be completed in the tenure of the present government,” the seven-time elected lawmaker Mostafizur said.

“The proposed budget did not create any pressure on the consummers ..the budget will create new employment and cut poverty as a whole,” said State Minister for Industries Kamal Ahmed Majumder.

Discussing on the proposed budget, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal lawmaker Main Uddin Khan Badal said that he will no longer stay in the parliament if he won’t get allocation by December for a bridge in his constituency despite urging the government repeatedly for the last ten years for monetary allocation for a particular bridge in his area, but failed to get a single paisa for construction of the bridge.

Criticizing the budget, opposition BNP lawmaker Harunur Rashid said the budget is totally bank loan dependent and it is totally unrealistic one.

Treasury bench member , State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Zakir Hossain, ASM Feroz, Shri Biren Sikder, HN Ashequr Rahman,Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh, Israfil Alam, Md Shahjahan Mia, Fazilatun Nessa, Md Abu Zahir, Sagufta Yasmin, Tanveer Imam, Abdul Mazid Khan, Choto Monir, Khadizatul Anwar, Monira Sultana, Tahzeeb Alam Siddique, Shafiqur Rahman and Bangladesh Tarikat Federation lawmaker Nazibul Bashar Maizvandary and Jatiya Party lawmakers Nasreen Jahan Ratna,Pir Fazlur Rahman, took part in the discussion.

Earlier, they paid their cordial tribute to the memory of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, four national leaders, martyred freedom fighters and also those who made their utmost sacrifices during the War of Liberation and all subsequent democratic movements in the country.