Aziz contradicts Akbar's 'fear of famine'
Sunday, 16 March 2008
Finance Adviser Dr Mirza Azizul Islam contradicted the view of former adviser of the caretaker government Dr Akbar Ali Khan that famine is prevailing in the country at present for high prices of essentials, reports UNB.
"How can famine exists in a country where import process and inflow of remittance are normal?" he posed the question, while initiating from Chittagong Saturday a long-drawn consultation on the upcoming new national budget.
Dr Akbar, presently chairman of the Regulatory Reforms Commission, Friday observed that the country was now passing through a "silent famine" following intolerable price hike of essentials and many other socio-economic crises.
Dr Aziz observed that there is no relation between budget and price hike.
He said the national budget would be adopted through an ordinance, as there is no parliament in the country at present.
This is for a second consecutive time that budget is going to be announced and adopted sans parliament, as the general election, stalled amid a political crisis in January 2007, is yet to be held.
"The budget will be presented with priority to human development, poverty alleviation, agriculture and communications sectors," he said in the first formal pre-budget meet with business community, public representatives, government officials and importers at the circuit-house auditorium.
The Finance Adviser said the government started from this port-city the process of holding pre-budget discussion in all divisional headquarters for eliciting opinions of cross-sections of people before announcing the new budget for the 2008-09 fiscal.
"How can famine exists in a country where import process and inflow of remittance are normal?" he posed the question, while initiating from Chittagong Saturday a long-drawn consultation on the upcoming new national budget.
Dr Akbar, presently chairman of the Regulatory Reforms Commission, Friday observed that the country was now passing through a "silent famine" following intolerable price hike of essentials and many other socio-economic crises.
Dr Aziz observed that there is no relation between budget and price hike.
He said the national budget would be adopted through an ordinance, as there is no parliament in the country at present.
This is for a second consecutive time that budget is going to be announced and adopted sans parliament, as the general election, stalled amid a political crisis in January 2007, is yet to be held.
"The budget will be presented with priority to human development, poverty alleviation, agriculture and communications sectors," he said in the first formal pre-budget meet with business community, public representatives, government officials and importers at the circuit-house auditorium.
The Finance Adviser said the government started from this port-city the process of holding pre-budget discussion in all divisional headquarters for eliciting opinions of cross-sections of people before announcing the new budget for the 2008-09 fiscal.