EPB- a den of corruption

ACC launches investigation against dishonest officials

Kazi Zahidul Hasan

 

The Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) has become a ‘den of corruption’ by adopting unfair means in allocation of tenders, sending business delegations aboard, misuse of power, transfer trade  and financial  irregularities, sources alleged.

“Nepotism in awarding tenders and misuse of power reached to a record level creating a broad controversy among the employees and officials in the organisation,” said an EPB official.

Meanwhile, a syndicate having nexus with some high officials of the ministry of commerce and the EPB’s finance and fair department engage in underhand dealings with their adored persons, who get stall allotments at the Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF), get printing and publication work without any tender and participate in trade fairs abroad, he added.

Sources alleged, “The syndicate is making huge financial gains every year in such deals and many of them by now became millionaires.”

They further alleged that the syndicate led by an official of its finance department bagged huge money from commission business in allocating 300 stalls at the DITF-2010. The syndicate had taken Tk 50,000 for each stall and bagged a total of Tk 1.5 crore from the deal.

It has also been giving printing and publication works to their adored persons without any tender every year.

“The syndicate had taken Tk 360,000 by allocating nine pavilions (Tk 40,000 for each pavillion) from the Pakistani entrepreneurs in 2010,” the sources added. [Read More]

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Source: The New Nation - Independent Daily