L-R: Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and Prof Muhammad Yunus.
Terming the plan to split Grameen Bank as a conspiracy, BNP acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday urged the government to stop “interfering” with the microcredit organisation.
“We (BNP) are with the 84 lakh staff of the bank,” the BNP leader told reporters during a press briefing at the party central office in Nayapaltan.
The party arranged the briefing to reveal its stance after Fakhrul held an exclusive meeting with Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank, in the morning at Yunus Centre in the capital.
Grameen Bank would be given full autonomy if BNP voted to power in the next general elections, Fakhrul said.
“BNP was always with Grameen Bank and will remain with it in future too,” he said.
Fakhrul said no political issues came up during their 40-minute discussion that started around 9:00am as “Prof Yunus is a non-political person”.
Fakhrul said that he went to greet Yunus on his winning the Congressional Gold Medal from the United States.
Journalists were not invited to cover the meeting.
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Sabihuddin Ahmed accompanied Fakhrul during the meeting.
The meeting was held when the Grameen Bank Inquiry Commission is planning to place a set of proposals to the government for restructuring the future of the microcredit organisation.
The three-member commission, set up in September last year, plans to present its recommendations at a workshop in Dhaka on July 2.
The commission is planning to recommend splitting Grameen Bank into 19 pieces.
It is also to recommend 51 percent government shares in the bank.
The government formed the commission to review the activities of Grameen Bank and 48 other legally independent organisations founded by Yunus in his lifelong efforts to eradicate poverty.
Source: bd news24
