Ripples of discontent have spread across Bangladesh as the country grapples with deepening distrust in the civil administration. the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus has seen protests rise across countless administration offices like the Bangladesh Secretariat and the country’s National Board of Revenue (NBR), as civil servants and business leaders oppose proposed reforms and policies.
On 25th May, NBR employees staged demonstrations outside their Dhaka office, protesting an amendment to the Government Service ordinance as civil servants felt insecure in their jobs. Concurrently, Dhaka South City Corporation employees locked administrative buildings, while the Prothom Alo newspaper reported the NBR as “dysfunctional” amid ongoing agitation.
Teachers of government schools have gone on an indefinite strike starting Monday stating they would refrain from working full time till their starting salaries are reinstated to the 11th grade of the national pay scale included in their 3 point demand is not met.
The business sector, led by the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI), has stated that it fears the country’s economic crisis, with businessmen stating famines are not far in the future. Leader of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association Showkat Aziz Russell has pointed out the interim government’s invitation to foreign entities to invest in Bangladesh is futile as investors prefer the stable Vietnam over uncertainties in Bangladesh. He revealed how the country’s businessmen were facing death much like intellectuals in the 1971 liberation war.
Bangladesh is rife with unsettling controversies, even the defence is cross with the interim government as talks of expediting the election process of the new government ‘is not possible before 2026’ according to officials. The military and navy held several closed door meetings with interim Prime Minister Muhammad Yunus discussing terms on elections being held tentatively by December and to express their reservations on the proposed humanitarian corridor to rebel occupied Rakhine state of Myanmar. Bangladesh is the largest host of Rohingya refugees, who fled ethnic cleansing in the Rakhine due to the Burmese military junta.
