Weather | Dhaka Lawmakers of the ninth parliament might get back the controversial privilege of importing duty-free cars as the ordinance promulgated by the immediate past caretaker government scrapping the opportunity is unlikely to be ratified.
The ordinance was not among the 44 short listed ones that are to be tabled soon in parliament as bills for ratification.
Talking to a number of members of the special committee that recommended the short list, it was learnt that the fate of the ordinance is almost decided although the committee did not discuss it formally.
The common sentiment of the committee members is against ratifying it to make into a law. They argued that the caretaker government does not have the jurisdiction to promulgate an ordinance to curtail lawmakers' facilities.
"Only parliament has the constitutional jurisdiction to determine the remuneration and privileges of lawmakers," one member said, referring to article 68 of the constitution. He said parliament should rather bring amendment to the order inserting new provisions to stop misuse of the facilities.
A few more ordinances out of the remaining 78, which are awaiting scrutiny, might be recommended for being placed in parliament as bills for ratification, the members said.
In June 2007, the army-backed caretaker government of Fakhruddin Ahmed repealed the provision that provides lawmakers with facilities under the Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Allowances) Order 1973 on grounds of gross misuse in the past.
If the ordinance is not ratified in 30 days from January 25, when it was placed in parliament, it will cease to have effect and the previous system will be reinstated.
According to the provision of the law, an MP is entitled to import free from customs duty, sales tax, development surcharge and import permit fee during the whole term in office, one car or jeep of such specification, and on such conditions, as the government may specify in his behalf.
The provision was introduced on May 24, 1987 during the rule of HM Ershad and was amended on August 28, 2002, with retrospective effect from July 1 that year.
Exercising the provision, lawmakers of the eighth parliament imported over 275 luxury cars, depriving the National Board of Revenue of taxes over Tk 280 crore. Taxes for most of these luxurious cars range from 73.91 percent to 196.10 percent, according to board officials.
Most MPs sold each of the cars to businessmen for Tk 10-25 lakh and selling BMW, Cadillac and Porsche cars, they made at least Tk 50 crore during the tenure of the eighth parliament.
The law, however, does not allow sales of these cars within three years of purchase.
Of these luxury vehicles, each of the 55 BMW cars was sold for up to Tk 84 lakh, 40 Mercedes-Benz cars and jeeps for Tk 1.18 crore and Tk 73 lakh, 10 Porsche cars for highest Tk 3 crore, 23 Lexus cars and jeeps for Tk 45 lakh and Tk 47 lakh, 16 Range Rover SUVs for Tk 54 lakh, four Cadillac cars for Tk 50 lakh, four Hummer SUVs for Tk 91 lakh, 42 Toyota Land Cruiser SUVs for around Tk 35 lakh, three Lincoln Navigator SUVs for up to Tk 50 lakh, three Infinity cars for Tk 40 lakh, 37 Mitsubishi Pajero V6 SUVs for Tk 25 lakh, and 17 Nissan Patrol and Nissan Pathfinder SUVs for Tk 31 lakh.
For their personal use the lawmakers, however, seem to prefer low-cost cars.
A number of companies that sell luxury cars in Bangladesh were involved in buying out the permits of these vehicles. A cartel of four distributors alone bought permits from 200 MPs, sources said. These companies later sold the cars to local businessmen with a good amount of profit.
The joint forces during the rule of the last caretaker government seized a number of luxurious cars from businessmen.
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Thursday, February 5, 2009 04:17 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
Why should an MP get such a privilege? If the public needs to pay taxes, why not the MPs who are just the representatives of the people. They are not above the people. Stop this illegal privileges. We pay taxes so must the MPs.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 04:30 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
The opposition and the government MPs now would agree on one thing, that is, to have the privilege of bringing the costliest car in such a poor county !!
Thursday, February 5, 2009 08:43 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
A clean govt can't afford such loop holes in law. If you allow filth flies will come. So better not do it.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 08:53 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
Why MPs of Bangladesh should have the opportunity of having duty-free cars,while 90% of the people who elected the MPs are struggling to make ends meet.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 10:17 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
When we see so many luxury cars on our congested roads who will say that our country is poor. It seems to be rich country inhabited by poor people. The care taker Govt took a decision by repealing previous facilities of the lawmakers for importing costly cars & thus depriving the govt of due revenue. The decision was hailed by common people. I feel that the 9th JS should ratified the ordinance & allow the lawmakers to import low cost cars. The Indian lawmakers are still using their old Ambassador care for traveling. Thus they have created a positive image among the common people. But Our lawmakers behave like Zaminders. Do they feel shy to travel to their constituency in small low cost cars? They promised to bring change in the country.We hope that they should first change themselves.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 11:08 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
Thia is greed and selfishness at their height. Unnecessarily this privilege costs the taxpayers substantial amount of money giving nothing back. Well, in return we see farces displayed, mindless boycotts and many other childish antics. This is ridiculous.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 11:16 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
The immediate past caretaker government has countermand the decision of duty free importation of car/jeep by each parliament members elected for 5 years term for gross violation of its basic principle by promulgating an ordinance. However, the newly elected members of the parliament would like to revoke that ordinance and would like to have the privilege back for importing car /jeep for their personal use.
MPs have been elected by the public votes to sit in the parliament and make laws for the country to run its administration for the benefit of the citizens. Most of them have been elected by the votes of thousand of rural poor people, most of them are remained half fed in a day or earn very little to survive. I think they all should keep in mind who had voted for them
I am not against to import duty free car/jeep by them as their privilege and immunity but I would like to emphasis that the Democratic Government should limit the CC and horse power of such car/Jeep with a brand name that a MP can import or to have a duty free car / jeep assembled in Bangladesh by Progati Industries. This arrangement would restrict open arrangement of car or jeep of higher values or brand that Bangladesh is unable to bear at this juncture.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 12:28 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
No matter what we say or write here, our MPs will not listen as they have never listed to the voice of ordinary people. Its all back to square one !!
Thursday, February 5, 2009 01:40 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
M/s MPs, please do not show us law, we know who can make laws and who can make laws for their own benefit shamelessly and blatantly. Also we have seen in the past three parliamentary terms how this tax free facility was misused audaciously with utter disrespect to honorable tax payers and hard working people of the country (I call them honorable, in my view they should be given most respect in the society, then those MPs who are reluctant to give up this tax free facility which should not have been there at the first place in a poor country like ours). We the general people demand that this tax free facility must be withdrawn immediately and let the passage of the ordinance happened. Please do not show-up your real faces so quickly that people lose confidence on the new MPs as well as on the parliament and finally on the democracy. In a poor country like our, they (MPs) have no right to get tax free facility, rather they (MPs) should think how they can provide tax free facilities to poor farmers for their living and daily livelihood. No one drag them (MPs) to come to politics and become MP. It is their own wish they wanted to serve the people of the country and now why they want special facilities in return which are not really required to carryout the job of MP. Please take these issues seriously and do not show audacity to behave in similar manner as those people who did in the last BNP regime……..and we all have seen the consequences.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 03:20 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
After seeing the background of banning the privilege, the PM should respect the ordinance promulgated by the CTG and make it a law. What makes the P.M. confident that his MP's will not misuse the privileges and repeat the same thing. Will the P.M. personally guarantee that all the MP' including the opposition will not be involved in corruption on this issue? I think, it is impossible.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 03:45 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
It is not a wonder,the greediest are there,there is no problem for the cars but they should pay the taxes.There should not be two standard for the people for tax in one country.People's representative should be the first to pay the tax as moral duty to the state.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 11:44 AM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
Walla! The political govt. takes it's traditional path same one that BNP took which led them to grave disaster at the election. Why do these RICH MPs need more cars? Then again- duty-free? Why? Don't then have more than enough?
Thursday, February 5, 2009 01:15 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
This is another example of how greedy our MPs are. How unfortunate we are electing these greedy people!! Their greedy attitude is same as it has been. It has not been even 6 months yet they came to power. They are already thinking about importing luxury vehicles? No shame at all..huh?
Thursday, February 5, 2009 02:21 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
There must not be two sets of regulations, one for the privileged few like the MPs and other for common taxpayers. By the way, when will our high-ups learn from history?
Thursday, February 5, 2009 02:24 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
It's obvious. If UZ Chairmen are granted Pajeros, why shouldn't the MPs demand for more?
But the question to ask is whether our UZ Chairmen or MPs are fit to get Pajeros? Is BD economy and our UZ/district road systems are fit for the Pajeros? Couldn't our people who ride now on rickshaws be simply given reconditioned Toyotas? How does that harm their prestige?
It's these unwarranted and unfit facilities which make these elected representatives most corrupt as they wish to maintain that standard of living by improving upon all their standards as well, like building palaces for themselves, etc.
Thursday, February 5, 2009 02:53 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
If the provision is not scrapped, it will be sad. It just says greed remains and if that is there can corruption be far behind?
God Bless US!
Thursday, February 5, 2009 03:44 PM GMT+06:00 (41 weeks ago)
Once again we are going to witness how our lawmakers abuse this provision even if we don't like to see them as petty car traders.