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Qatar Tribune
7 days ago
- Business
- Qatar Tribune
Bangladesh's tax workers end strike as govt backtracks
Agencies Bangladesh's tax authority workers ended a two-week partial strike on Sunday after they said the interim government would address their demands to stop an overhaul of the body. Earlier on Sunday, security forces had surrounded the national tax authority headquarters, after government orders to reform the National Board of Revenue (NBR) sparked fury from employees. Joint Tax Commissioner Monalisa Saha Sushmita told reporters at the main NBR building in Dhaka, where police and armed security gathered, that the workers would begin a 'complete' shutdown. Hours later, NRB senior official Abdur Rouf said the strike had ended. 'The government assured to take care of our demands, and that's why we have called off our strike,' Rouf told AFP. 'Our next step is negotiation.' NRB officials had said their strike had resulted in the revenues not being collected that totaled $122-163 million per day. It was not possible to verify those figures. Bangladesh has been in turmoil since a student-led revolt ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, ending her 15-year iron-fisted rule. The interim government - led by Nobel Peace Prize-winning microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus - is trying to enact sweeping reforms. The tax board protest reflects the divisions, rival loyalties and confusion between government branches and the caretaker administration. The government proposals would have allowed civil servants from outside the NRB to take top roles. Bangladesh is the world's second-largest garment manufacturer, while textile and garment production accounts for about 80 percent of the country's exports. The industry has been rebuilding after it was hit hard by last year's unrest. In separate protests on Sunday, hundreds of civil servants demonstrated in Dhaka against a government order giving it greater power to sack employees for disciplinary breaches. 'If the government proceeds with the amended ordinance, the interim government will face severe criticism,' said Mohammad Nazrul Islam from the Inter-Ministerial Employees Association.
Reuters
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Protests grip Bangladesh as pressure mounts on Yunus-led government
DHAKA, May 26 (Reuters) - Primary school teachers in Bangladesh joined public sector workers in protests against the interim government on Monday amid growing discontent and political uncertainty in the South Asian country. Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus, 84, took over as interim head of the country of 173 million last August after deadly student-led protests forced then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to India. Yunus' administration has faced pressure from civil servants, teachers, political parties and the military as the caretaker government attempts to guide the country through a fragile transition before holding a general election. The government issued an ordinance on Sunday allowing the Ministry of Public Administration to dismiss public servants for misconduct without lengthy procedures, sparking outrage across the bureaucracy. Government employees continued their demonstrations for a third consecutive day on Monday, calling the ordinance "repressive" and demanding its immediate withdrawal. Thousands of teachers in government primary schools also began indefinite leave from work on Monday, demanding a hike in wages. In the face of protests by the employees of National Board of Revenue, the interim government was forced on Sunday to withdraw an order to dissolve the tax body and replace it with two divisions under the finance ministry. The strike was then called off. Political uncertainty also deepened last week after a top student leader said Yunus said he could step down if political parties cannot agree on reforms and an election timeline. Wahiduddin Mahmud, the planning adviser in Yunus' cabinet, however, said the de-facto prime minister was not quitting. "We are not going anywhere till our job is done," Mahmud said during the weekend, adding that Yunus acknowledged the obstacles but remained committed to holding a fair election. The interim government has been caught between competing demands for swift general elections and reforms. Yunus has said the elections could be held by June, 2026 while the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, has been pushing for polls by December. Bangladesh's army chief, General Waker-Uz-Zaman, added to the pressure by calling for elections to be held in December during a speech last week, expressing his dissatisfaction over the political situation. Yunus convened a last-minute meeting of his Advisory Council on Saturday and also held talks during the weekend with the country's main political forces, including the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, and the student-led National Citizen Party. Leaders of other political parties also met Yunus. "We are in a war-like situation," Yunus' press secretary Shafiqul Alam told reporters on Sunday. "After the Awami League's activities were banned, attempts are on to destabilise us in various ways. We have to get out of this situation." The registration of Hasina's Awami League party was suspended this month, effectively barring the party from contesting the next election.
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First Post
25-05-2025
- Business
- First Post
Bangladesh: Govt workers extend strike against Yunus' tax reforms, cost upto $163 mn in uncollected duties daily
Bangladesh's interim government's order to overhaul the powerful National Board of Revenue (NBR) has triggered widespread outrage among its workers, from rank-and-file employees to senior management. The estimated lost tax revenues due to the protests is between $122-163 million read more Bangladeshi security forces surrounded the headquarters of the country's national tax authority Sunday (May 25) as employees extended a two-week strike protesting controversial reforms by the interim government, reportedly costing millions in uncollected taxes every day. The government's order to overhaul the powerful National Board of Revenue (NBR) has triggered widespread outrage among its workers, from rank-and-file employees to senior management. 'Tax, customs, and VAT – all three wings will observe a complete work abstention from Monday,' Joint Tax Commissioner Monalisa Saha Sushmita told journalists outside the NBR headquarters in Dhaka, where police and armed personnel had gathered. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Bangladesh has been embroiled in turmoil since student-led protests ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, ending her 15-year tenure. The interim administration, headed by Nobel laureate and microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus, has pursued extensive government reforms aimed at curbing corruption and inefficiency. The May 12 directive proposed dividing the influential revenue-collecting NBR into two entities, with external civil servants appointed by the government to manage the new divisions. Protesters see this move as undermining the existing authority and disrupting established practices. Sushmita claimed the ongoing strike had severely impacted economic activity, stating, 'imports and exports will also be halted,' and estimated lost tax revenues at between $122 million and $163 million daily since the protests began. Those figures, however, could not be independently confirmed. The unrest poses additional challenges to Bangladesh's critical textile and garment sector, which represents approximately 80 per cent of national exports and has struggled to recover following last year's political instability. Separately on Sunday (May 25), hundreds of civil servants protested another government directive granting authorities expanded powers to dismiss public employees for disciplinary reasons. 'If the government proceeds with the amended ordinance, the interim government will face severe criticism,' warned Mohammad Nazrul Islam, spokesperson for the Inter-Ministerial Employees Association. With inputs from agencies STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Time of India
25-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Bangladesh government workers protest tax authority reform
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Bangladesh security forces surrounded the national tax authority headquarters on Sunday as its employees extended a two-week-long strike over the interim government's reforms, reportedly leaving millions of dollars in taxes orders to overhaul the powerful tax authority, the National Board of Revenue (NBR), have sparked fury from ordinary employees to top management."Tax, customs, and VAT -- all three wings will observe a complete work abstention from Monday," Joint Tax Commissioner Monalisa Saha Sushmita told reporters at the main NBR building in Dhaka, where police and armed security has been in turmoil since a student-led revolt ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, ending her 15-year iron-fisted interim government -- led by Nobel Peace Prize microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus -- is trying to instil sweeping government tax board protest reflects the divisions, rival loyalties and confusion between government branches and the caretaker government order issued on May 12 proposed splitting the powerful money-raising NRB into it would also hand control of the new sections to government-chosen civil servants from outside the claimed that the strike will mean, in effect, that "imports and exports will also be halted" and that tax revenues totalling between $122-163 million per day had not been collected since the strike was not possible to verify those is the world's second-largest garment manufacturer, while textile and garment production accounts for about 80 percent of the country's industry has been rebuilding after it was hit hard by last year's separate protests on Sunday, hundreds of civil servants demonstrated in Dhaka against a government order giving it greater power to sack employees for disciplinary breaches."If the government proceeds with the amended ordinance, the interim government will face severe criticism," said Mohammad Nazrul Islam from the Inter-Ministerial Employees Association.
Time of India
25-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Bangladesh government workers protest tax authority reform
Bangladesh government workers protest tax authority reform DHAKA: Bangladesh security forces surrounded the national tax authority headquarters on Sunday as its employees extended a two-week-long strike over the interim government's reforms, reportedly leaving millions of dollars in taxes uncollected. Government orders to overhaul the powerful tax authority, the National Board of Revenue (NBR), have sparked fury from ordinary employees to top management. "Tax, customs, and VAT -- all three wings will observe a complete work abstention from Monday," Joint Tax Commissioner Monalisa Saha Sushmita told reporters at the main NBR building in Dhaka, where police and armed security gathered. Bangladesh has been in turmoil since a student-led revolt ousted former prime minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024, ending her 15-year iron-fisted rule. The interim government -- led by Nobel Peace Prize microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus -- is trying to instil sweeping government reforms. The tax board protest reflects the divisions, rival loyalties and confusion between government branches and the caretaker administration. The government order issued on May 12 proposed splitting the powerful money-raising NRB into two. Crucially, it would also hand control of the new sections to government-chosen civil servants from outside the NRB. Sushmita claimed that the strike will mean, in effect, that "imports and exports will also be halted" and that tax revenues totalling between $122-163 million per day had not been collected since the strike began. It was not possible to verify those figures. Bangladesh is the world's second-largest garment manufacturer, while textile and garment production accounts for about 80 percent of the country's exports. The industry has been rebuilding after it was hit hard by last year's unrest. In separate protests on Sunday, hundreds of civil servants demonstrated in Dhaka against a government order giving it greater power to sack employees for disciplinary breaches. "If the government proceeds with the amended ordinance, the interim government will face severe criticism," said Mohammad Nazrul Islam from the Inter-Ministerial Employees Association.
