I will not fail

The finance ministry will make a fresh start from today and will be beyond reproach, said AHM Mustafa Kamal after he was given charge of the ministry. 

"You will see many new things there. This is my subject and I studied the subject. So, I can tell you: I will not make any false promise and I will not fail."

The way the finance ministry had been run in the past will not be the same under his charge.

Kamal's comments came at a media briefing yesterday on the implementation of the annual development programme (ADP) in the first half of the fiscal year, held at the auditorium of the National Economic Council.

Cabinet Secretary Shafiul Alam yesterday announced the names of the members of the upcoming cabinet and their portfolios.

As per the announcement, Planning Minister Kamal is being given the charge of the finance ministry and MA Mannan, state minister for finance and planning, will take his post. They will take oath today.

Replying to a query about the financial sector, Kamal said: "It is not difficult to address the existing problems. You will no longer see the faults that you now see."

He will straight away get down to identifying the problems in the finance ministry and then take action accordingly.

MA Mannan, however, said he would not come up with anything revolutionary as the planning minister.  "The progress that has already been made will be taken forward."

Both Kamal and Mannan said the two ministries would coordinate going forward.

In the first six months of fiscal 2018-19, 27.42 percent, or Tk 94,595 crore, of the development budget has been implemented.

"This is higher than a year earlier," Kamal said.