"I have no idea from where these wretched thieves has emerged"

On March 17, Bangladesh observed the birthday of its founding father with deep respect and love. Bangabandhu envisioned a modern, developed, prosperous, and self-reliant Bangladesh, which he called "Sonar Bangla" (Golden Bengal). In just three and a half years, he transformed a war-ravaged and devastated country into a success story of remarkable reconstitution. But Bangabandhu was not satisfied. There were obstacles at every turn. He spoke openly about these challenges and the enemies of development, without any reservation. On March 26, 1975, on the occasion of the historic Independence Day, he delivered a speech at the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial in which he called for a struggle against corruption. In that speech, he said, "If economic freedom is not achieved, political freedom will fail. If people cannot eat their fill, cannot clothe themselves, and cannot solve their unemployment problems, then peace will not return to their lives. Who are the corrupt today? Those who give bribes, those who take bribes, those who smuggle, those who engage in black marketing, those who do not fulfill their responsibilities, those who work against conscience, those who sell their country to foreign countries. We must start our fight against these dishonest people. We must build forts in our homes to eradicate these dishonest people. We must build these forts to alleviate the suffering of the people of Bangladesh. ...These are all thieves, and I don't know where they came from. Pakistan took everything, but if they had taken these thieves, I would have survived." (Source: Sheikh Mujib, Bangladesh's Another Name - Dr. Atiur Rahman. Pages: 267-268)

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is walking on the path shown by Bangabandhu, leading Bangladesh forward in the struggle for economic freedom. Under Sheikh Hasina's leadership, Bangladesh has achieved unprecedented success in the past 14 years. However, the thieves still exist. They dance at the celebrations of their corruption. These corrupt individuals, smugglers, and willful defaulters are the biggest obstacles to the country's economy and progress. They are a disease for this country, a terrible cancer. If we cannot defeat them, we will not be able to build the 'Golden Bengal'. Our economic liberation will be impossible. Bangladesh's economy is currently struggling through a storm. Inflation is over eight percent. Recently, the Prime Minister addressed a gathering of businessmen and stated, "The rise in commodity prices is causing suffering for people." Bangladesh's foreign currency reserves are now over 30 billion dollars. This is true, as Bangladesh's economy has suffered a significant blow due to the Russia-Ukraine war. However, despite the impact of the war's leadership, Bangladesh's economy remains strong. If smuggling could be stopped, the burden of unwanted debts would not have occurred. When Bangabandhu declared war against "thieves," they were not "robbers," but they have turned into "monsters" now. They are sucking up all our dreams and achievements like bloodsuckers. We must wage war against them and defeat them.

Bangladesh is currently one of the top countries in the world for money laundering. The exact amount of money that has been laundered out of the country is unknown, but various credible sources in the international media have reported that the amount exceeds 100 billion dollars. If this money had stayed in the country instead of being laundered abroad, our foreign currency reserves would have been over 130 billion dollars. We would have become the 20th largest economy in the world. There is no denying that money laundering has occurred. Everyone knows who has done it and where it has taken place. Some incidents of money laundering have been proven, such as the sudden disappearance of Member of Parliament Shahid Islam. In the 2018 election, he shocked everyone by winning the Lakshmipur-2 seat in parliament. While he was a Member of Parliament, he was arrested in Kuwait on charges of human trafficking, visa fraud, and money laundering by the Kuwaiti law enforcement agencies. The Kuwaiti investigation agency proved in court that Shahid had laundered 53 million Kuwaiti dinars (1,400 crore taka). In a four-year sentence, Shahid has been punished and is now in jail in Kuwait. His position as a member of parliament has been revoked, but there is no visible progress in recovering the smuggled money. In 2020, the news of a Bangladeshi housewife's huge wealth created a buzz in the global media. Shamima Sultana Jannati, the wife of a member of parliament, bought a house in Canada for CAD 14.56 million and sold it off. Jannati is not the only one involved in money laundering in Canada. The list of Bangladeshi money launderers in Canada is so long that the entire 'Bangladesh Pratidin' newspaper will not be enough to list them all. In Canada, notorious money launderer Prashant Kumar Halder was recently arrested in India. Despite facing arrests in Bangladesh, Halder managed to flee to Canada. The Anti-Corruption Commission had stated that Prashant Kumar Halder had laundered Tk 5,000 crore. However, after being caught in India, he claimed that the amount laundered from Bangladesh was around Tk 10,000 crore. Prashant told Indian investigators, 'This money is not mine, I am only a carrier. The owner of the money is well known. He is outside the country. Dr. AK Abdul Momen, the Foreign Minister, provided the most volatile information on money laundering in Canada and the issue of Bangladeshi homes in Begum Para. The Foreign Minister talk about it without any discrimination, without any cover-up. In November 2020, at an event, Dr. Momen said, "There is some truth to the allegations of money laundering from Bangladesh to Canada. And according to preliminary information, the number of government officials involved in money laundering is more." The Foreign Minister said, "I thought there would be more politicians involved. But it turns out that there are only four politicians. The number of government officials is more. Apart from this, there are some businessmen." That is, the government knows all the necessary information about money launderers in Canada. No action has been taken against them. The story of two infamous student leaders from Faridpur, Barkat and Rubel, is no longer a secret. They used to form student groups before. After Mosharraf Hossain became established as a "landlord" in Faridpur, Barkat and Rubel became part of the student league. Then the reign of looting in Faridpur began. In Faridpur, Rubel-Barkat were arrested after Engineer Mosharraf Hossain's tenure ended. According to the CID, the two have smuggled almost BDT 200 billion abroad. CID have arrested several people of the Mosharraf gang on allegations of money smuggling. However, no progress has been made in recovering the money. To prevent money smuggling, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Bangladesh Bank has been formed. The FIU's annual report (2021-22) states that prices of certain goods have been raised by 20% to 200%. This means that goods that were imported for $100 are being sold for $200. Although it is difficult to estimate the amount of money that has been smuggled, it can be assumed that some amount has been smuggled. According to a report by the Washington-based International organization Global Financial Integrity (GFI), Bangladesh has lost BDT 4,965 crore or $4 billion in the past 14 years due to international trade. According to the information of the GFI, more than $12 billion has been smuggled through international trade fraud. Abdur Rauf Talukder, the Governor of Bangladesh Bank, has taken responsibility to prevent over-invoicing in imports and under-invoicing in exports. Now, proposed import items are verified against international market prices before being allowed to be imported. After examination and inspection, permission is granted for the import of goods. Before the arrival of the new governor, abnormal prices of various imported goods had to be accepted. For example, the import price of 1 kg of strawberries was shown to be $1,000! Imports of oranges and lemons were done at a cost of $800 per kg. It is understood that these exorbitant price increases were done solely for the purpose of money laundering. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. About $10 billion worth of imports have been made in just one year. What is the result? Only over-invoicing? No, under-invoicing has also been done through the medium of hundi to smuggle money. Through illegal means, Bangladeshis have been investing in Malaysia, buying second homes in Canada, and investing in many countries in North and South America, Europe, Eastern Asia, Central Asia, and even the island of Afsar. Those involved in businesses such as garment and fruit trade know how much money has been smuggled and where it has been hidden. The government is not unaware of this. It was reported internationally that a businessman in Singapore had purchased a five-star hotel. Was the money from Bangladesh transferred to Singaporean accounts? Some people in Thailand have built a huge empire by smuggling money from Bangladesh. Not only through imports and exports, but also through financial fraud in mobile transactions, money is being smuggled out of Bangladesh. According to the information of the CID, Bangladesh has lost 7.8 billion dollars through this type of fraud. Many looters keep the money they have stolen in Switzerland. Many consider Swiss banks to be a safe haven for depositing money. In 2021, Bangladeshis had deposited 82.76 billion taka in Swiss banks. In 2020, it was 53.48 billion taka. In just one year, smuggled money deposited in Swiss banks has increased by 30 billion taka. Who is involved in this smuggling?

Many have opened companies in the island nations known as 'tax havens' or 'paradise papers' by smuggling money from the country. The names of 84 people, including the influential leader of the BNP Abdul Awal Mintoo and his wife and son, were published in that list by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) on their website a long time ago. The Anti-Corruption Commission's lawyer said that an investigation is underway against them. However, no one knows the progress of that investigation. Many of those who smuggle money are loyal to the government. Their behavior is visible around the government. Many of them were once loyal to the BNP and the Hawa Bhaban. Now they have changed color and become loyal to the Awami League. It is heard that they also give a share to a prominent leader of the BNP from the money they smuggle to London. They do not see the country's interests. They are busy presenting themselves cruelly. They keep their feet on two boats to avoid future concerns.

Just as a terrible disease, the business of loan defaulters is another malady in our economy. A few days ago, President M. Abdul Hamid said in a speech, "Many take bank loans just to embezzle the money. They become willful defaulters." The President was right, in the past few years, the menace of loan default has thrown some deep crises into the banking system. According to Bangladesh Bank's accounts, the amount of defaulted loans at the end of the last fiscal year was Tk. 125 billion. Companies with no assets or identity have taken hundreds of crores of Taka in loans. Clearly, influential groups with no government control have opened companies and looted banks with the help of their cronies. Some people have cheated the banks by taking loans and fleeing abroad. The money of Hallmark's scam has not been recovered. They have embezzled the banks' money and are enjoying a luxurious life abroad under the name of the Bismillah Group. Six banks took a loan of 12,000 crore (120 billion) taka by showing fake documents. Now the owners of this group are living a luxurious life abroad with the borrowed money. While the people of Bangladesh are suffering. The owners have formed a syndicate controlling almost all private banks under the influence of a few individuals. They are now part of the ruling Awami League. But in the language of Bangabandhu, they are 'thieves'.

The Finance Minister in 2018 had said that not a single penny of bad debt would increase. However, in the last four years, bad debts have doubled. There is no possibility of recovering more than half of these debts. The Finance Minister's efforts have not been effective in stopping financial corruption either. In the budget speech, the Finance Minister announced a general amnesty for smugglers. But in the first eight months of the fiscal year, not a single penny of smuggled money has been recovered. No one wants to be recognized as a thief. Therefore, imposing a 7.5% tax on smuggled money to bring it back into the country is a feasible option. It will not be possible to forgive and forget, and we need to take a firm stance. Otherwise, the people of the country will be held responsible by smugglers and bad debtors. We need to organize a political movement against financial corruption, bad debt, and dishonesty. In this context, I can see a ray of hope. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has declared a strict stance on returning money to the country's financial sector. Despite the opposition of smugglers and loan defaulters, the Prime Minister has sent a message of strictness against them. Based on that message, the recent remarks of Awami League Joint General Secretary and popular leader AFM Bahauddin Nasim have created a stir in politics. Nasim said, "We have to fight against corruption, nepotism, looters, loan defaulters, and bank robbers. They are the enemies of the country and a big obstacle to Sheikh Hasina's development and prosperity." The statement of Bahauddin Nasim is in line with the wishes of Awami League President. Loan defaulters, smugglers, and corrupt people cannot be anyone's friend. They are the enemy of the nation. The Father of the Nation had two goals when he declared independence on March 7, 1971. One was political independence, and the other was economic freedom. The opponents of political independence were the Rajakars, Al-Badr, and war criminals. Similarly, obstacles to economic freedom were the corrupt, the profiteers, and loan sharks. They are the war criminals of this time. We must say 'no' to them. We must eliminate them. Otherwise, we will never achieve the dream of Bangabandhu's 'Golden Bengal'. The father of the nation had called for their eradication. It is his daughter who must end this war against them. Sheikh Hasina must be victorious in this war. After 1975, looters, black money holders, and thugs entered Bangladesh's politics. They seized control of politics by supporting military dictatorships. These corrupt and criminal elements act like sycophants under every government. They suck the blood of the nation. They seek opportunities to become close to the government. The Awami League has been in power for only 14 years. The looter gang is now clashing with the government and Awami League. Looking at their past, it can be seen that they looted during Ershad's time and made themselves wealthy by occupying the Hawa Bhaban. Now they have become bigger than Awami League! Because of them, the loyal and tested members of Awami League are being marginalized. They use the power of money to buy support or to get their preferred people elected. The looters use their money to get into the committees of the Awami League. They have robbed us and created a mountain of wealth abroad. If their theft is not stopped, the government's entire achievements will be lost. Let us take a tough stance against money launderers and loan defaulters of Awami League before the upcoming elections; this is the people's expectation. The people do not want to see any looters around the corridors of power. If we take action against them, it will create a wave of support for Awami League. The country will survive, and the economy will thrive if we take this tough stance. Only Sheikh Hasina can take this tough stance. Money launderers and bank looters are the cancer of Bangladesh. The disease has been identified and now it only needs the right treatment.