Cabinet closes in November: Mahfuj Alam

The Advisory Council of the interim government will wrap up its meetings within November, Information Adviser Mahfuj Alam has said, reports

bdnews24.com.

Speaking at a "Meet the Reporters" event organised by the Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) on Sunday, he highlighted the progress made in implementing reforms under his ministry.

"The Reform Commission has submitted 23 urgent recommendations for implementation," he said.

"The ministry has reviewed them and is currently implementing 13. The cabinet will close in November, so we aim to complete what needs to be done within next month."

Mahfuj also said, "I support reducing the number of publications and increasing advertising rates. But circulation data must be accurate."

The BNP recently urged the interim government to maintain strict neutrality during the election period in a meeting with the chief advisor. Now, Advisor Mahfuj has hinted at a change in the government's approach.

He said, "We will soon place the One House, One Media policy and the Journalist Protection Act before the cabinet. We will also leave behind a regulatory framework for online news portals. Measures will be taken against newspapers that are no longer in print."

Referring to the lack of a specific law for private television channels, he said, "Television licences were granted to business groups affiliated with the Awami League. They still hold ownership of these channels and continue to count their profits from abroad."

OTT CONTENT TO BE REGULATED

The information and broadcasting advisor said discussions are under way with the ICT Division on regulating OTT platforms and digital content.