The assets, cash money and income of most of the ministers of the ruling Awami League have increased manifold during their tenures.
The annual income of the Road Transport and Bridges Minister, Obaidul Quader, has increased by 27.19 times over the past 15 years, while his movable assets have risen by 13.18 times during the same period.
According to the latest affidavit submitted with the nomination papers for the January 7 national polls, the annual income of Quader, also AL general secretary, has shot up from Tk 1.40 lakh in 2008 to Tk 38.07 lakh in 2023.
The 2008 document showed Quader’s annual income at Tk 1.40 lakh from teaching, journalism, law profession, consultancy and other sources.
Currently, he earnings comprise—Tk 14.24 lakh from the rents of house, apartment and shop; Tk 6.97 lakh from shares, savings certificates and bank deposits; Tk 12.60 lakh from his job, allowances and other professional engagements, including teaching, journalism, law related work and consultancy; and Tk 4.25 lakh from writing.
The documents show that Quader, AL candidate for the Noakhali-5 constituency, back in 2008, owned movable assets valued Tk 24.48 lakh that increased to Tk 3.22 crore in 2023.
For moveable assets, in 2008, Quader had Tk 4.87 lakh (seized) in deposits in banks and financial institutions, which has grown to Tk 75.63 lakh in 2023, while Tk 15.56 lakh (seized) was invested in postal savings certificates and fixed deposits in 2008 that has increased to Tk 1.49 crore by 2023.
In 2008, Quader owned a Tk 10 thousand mobile phone, the sole electronic appliance, and Tk 1.50 lakh worth furniture, whereas currently, he owns electronic gadgets valued at Tk 9.20 lakh, furniture worth Tk 8.75 lakh and a vehicle valued at Tk 77.50 lakh.
His immovable assets also increased by around five times.
The minister, who had a 3-katha plot allotted by Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha in Uttara valued at Tk 10.29 lakh in 2008, now possesses a 5-katha plot valued at Tk 50.79 lakh.
The income and assets of education minister Dipu Moni has seen exponential growth, marking a 41 times increase in her annual income in the last 15 years.
The movable assets of Dipu Moni, also the AL’s joint general secretary, including cash, savings certificates and gold, have increased nearly 59 times in the period.
Her affidavit submitted for January 7 election from Chandpur-4 constituency, has showed Tk 3 lakh as annual income from her law profession in 2008, but it now stands at Tk 1.23 crore.
Now, her immovable assets comprising three flats and 10 katha of land together are valued at over Tk 3.94 crore although she did not own any immovable property in 2008.
She had no loan in 2008 but now has a personal loan amounting to around Tk 1.12 crore.
Law minister Anisul Huq’s cash money possession has staggeringly increased by 218 times in the last ten years from Tk 5 lakh in 2014 to Tk 10.92 crore in 2023, his affidavits show.
A lawyer by profession, Anisul earns Tk 43 lakh annually from agriculture and fisheries, Tk 5.24 lakh from house rents, Tk 12.60 lakh as an allowance for his position as a minister, Tk 43.45 lakh from bank and FDR interest, and Tk 1.65 lakh from shares and bank deposits named after his late mother.
According to his latest affidavit, his movable wealth, among others, include Tk 10.92 crore cash and $14,093 invested in shares of Citizen Bank and ‘Exim Bangladesh’, which are now worth Tk 40.10 crore, bank deposits valued at Tk 6.54 crore, savings certificates and others worth Tk 5.79 crore, four cars and a motorbike worth Tk 5.48 crore, and 20 bhori gold.
His immovable assets include eight bigha arable land, 1 acre and 22.5 decimal non-arable land, houses, and flats. He also owns 16.89 bigha arable land and three fish farms in jointly.
Anisul was elected lawmaker in 2014 and 2018 from Bharmanbaria-4 constituency and for the coming election also he has secured AL nomination from the same seat.
Local government, rural development and cooperatives minister Md Tajul Islam in the past ten years has secured an increase of around Tk 102 crore in his wealth.
Tajul, the AL candidate for Cumilla-9 constituency, has his wealth increased to Tk 118 crore from Tk 47.46 crore in 2018 and Tk 16 crore in 2014.
He now earns Tk 4.17 crore annually from sources including house rents, agriculture, fishing and poultry, share, savings certificates, honorarium as lawmaker.
Tajul’s cash money increased to Tk 8.52 lakh in 2023 from only Tk 25 thousand in 2014, while he has now an investment Tk 80 crore in bond, which was Tk 3.82 crore in 2018.
His deposits in bank and financial institutions increased from Tk 24.51 lakh in 2018 to Tk 1.23 crore this time, while his investment in postal and savings certificates increased to Tk 6.73 crore in 2023 from Tk 33.60 lakh in 2014.
In the last ten years, Tajul’s immovable wealth increased eight times to Tk 21.56 crore in 2023 from Tk 2.67 crore in 2014.
Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal’s assets have experienced relatively lesser growth than many other ministers in that his movable and immovable wealth together grew nearly 1.5 times in the last five years, while he also has a loan of Tk 2 crore.
His wife Tahmina Khan’s assets all together increased almost four times during the period.
Asaduzzaman Khan, an AL candidate from the Dhaka-12 constituency, showed that his total assets’ worth at Tk 8.36 crore in 2023 compared to Tk 5.76 crore in 2018.
Of this, his immovable property is valued at Tk 5.79 crore compared to Tk 4.49 crore in 2018.
The movable assets of foreign minister AK Abdul Momen have almost doubled in the last five years, according to an affidavit submitted for January 7 election.
Momen, the AL candidate in the Sylhet-1 constituency, showed his movable assets now total Tk 4.79 crore, compared to Tk 2.85 crore in 2018.
His immovable property slightly increased to around Tk 4.62 crore, compared to Tk 4.24 crore in 2018. He has no loans.
However, his annual income somewhat decreased to Tk 26 lakh in the current affidavit, compared to around Tk 36 lakh five years ago.
The annual income of Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs minister Bir Bahadur Ushwe Sing increased 17.5 times in the last 15 years.
Bir Bahadur’s annual income increased to Tk 3.15 crore now from Tk 18 lakh in 2008 during the ninth parliament election.
Expatriates welfare and overseas employment minister Imran Ahmad saw his annual income to increase 12 times, while his movable wealth increased 68 times in the last 15 years.
Imran’s income was Tk 3.6 lakh in 2008 which increased to Tk 44.4 lakh now, while his movable property also saw a very high growth to Tk 3.76 crore in 2023 from Tk 5.52 lakh in 2008.
Food minister Sadhan Chandra Majumder’s annual income also saw a staggering increase—from Tk 2.5 lakh in 2008 to Tk 3.94 crore in 2023—an almost 157 times increase in 15 years.
The annual income of health minister Zahid Malek has surged nearly 12 times—from Tk 71.34 lakh in 2008 to Tk 8.29 crore in 2023. His movable assets increased from Tk 6.78 crore in 2008 to Tk 70.33 crore now.
Transparency International Bangladesh executive director Iftekharuzzaman told New Age that this is not the first time that such mind boggling pictures of increase of wealth and income of the public representatives have been in public domain since the provision of mandatory disclosures was created under the ‘Representation of the People Order’.
He said, ‘Despite increasingly agonising public frustrations, no credible action has ever been taken by relevant authorities especially EC, ACC or NBR to serve the lofty immediate and long term purposes of this disclosure.’
‘Continued failure to ensure accountability is not only providing impunity to abuse of power but also leading to further deepening and widening of corruption at all levels,’ Iftekharuzzaman further said.
New Age
