Economy bleeds away
The Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) has unveiled a report detailing losses sustained by the various sectors of the economy over the past 30 days of political violence. According to it, the business sector as a whole has been suffering losses to the tune of Tk.2,277 crore per day and the total loss stands at Tk.68,310 crore over the entire period, which is approximately 5 per cent of the GDP. Not a single sector has been spared the onslaught of violent confrontation between the BNP led 20-party alliance and the government. The DCCI report merely reaffirms what had been suspected. It shows us which sector has sustained how much loss over the last one month.
We remain at a loss as to why the economy that affects us all must pay the price of gridlocked politics. When will the carnage, in terms of both human and property loss, stop? The statements coming out of both the government and the opposition remind us of a dance between the matador and the bull in an arena where we, the people, are spectators. There can only be one winner in a bull fight. The rest of us, including the economy, are apparently losers. Some 50 people have been burnt to smithereens, many others continue to suffer in burn units of various hospitals, and hundreds of vehicles been torched. Neither the very young, nor the old are spared. Have we lost both our humanity and sanity? Only when our political masters decide to sit down and talk things through will we be delivered from this madness.
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