Published: 08:37 AM, 12 January 2025
Nagorik Committee demands withdrawal of VAT hikes
The Jatiya Nagorik Committee (JNC) has urged the government to immediately withdraw the recent hikes in Vat and supplementary duties and resume the selling of goods at subsidized prices via trucks through the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB).
Jatiya Nagorik Committee Member Secretary Akhtar Hossain came up with the demands at a press conference at the central office of the platform in capital's Banglamotor area on Saturday.
Akhtar Hossain said, "Recently, the government issued two ordinances to increase VAT and supplementary duties on over a hundred goods and services to boost revenue. This will lead to inflation and higher business costs, adversely affecting people's living standards." Highlighting corruption, Akhtar alleged that $234 billion was siphoned off the country during the previous government's 15-year rule. He urged the current administration to take stringent measures to recover the laundered funds and reconsider the terms of International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans to ensure sound economic management.
Akhtar questioned whether the new government had reviewed the IMF loan conditions agreed upon by the previous government. He stressed that the current government, formed through a mass uprising, should not perpetuate the hardships caused by agreements made by an "illegitimate regime".
Addressing the lack of a fixed date for announcing the July uprising proclamation, he said, "We expect visible steps from the government. At the same time, the excessive reverence shown by some political parties for the 1972 constitution is also questionable."
Opposing the rush to organise the national election without completing the necessary reforms, Akhtar Hossain said, "Parties demanding an early election are positioning themselves against the aspirations of the people. I urge the government not to do anything that will make people's lives more difficult."
Opposing the rush to organise the national election without completing the necessary reforms, Akhtar Hossain said, "Parties demanding an early election are positioning themselves against the aspirations of the people. I urge the government not to do anything that will make people's lives more difficult."
