A parliamentary body yesterday suggested giving out dealerships of the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh to individuals as per lawmakers' recommendations so as to ensure “accountability and transparency”.

The parliamentary standing committee on commerce also asked the ministry concerned to inform it of the number of persons who had become TCB franchisees in this manner.

The committee's lawmakers also expressed disappointment over the price hike of onion, saying the daily essential item was presently selling at Tk 50 per kilogramme.

“As lawmakers we do not know who had been given dealership of TCB in our areas,” said lawmaker Sanowar Hossain, who was present at the meeting.

“There are many allegations against TCB dealers as a section of them sell different essential items in regular markets instead of going for open market sale (OMS),” he said. 

The government's OMS programme is meant to provide essential commodities to the common people at relatively low prices.

Sanowar said they made the suggestion so that MPs could oversee TCB dealers' activities.

The practice of MPs recommending TCB dealers existed a long way back.

A TCB representative informed the JS body that there were 2,816 TCB dealers at present and TCB now maintained a certain criteria to select individuals for dealerships.

The criteria stipulates that respective deputy commissioners (DC) will launch investigations to verify applications of prospective candidates, who must have a warehouse capable of storing three to four tonnes of goods and provide bank solvency and income tax certificates. 

The minutes of the committee's last meeting on August 8 showed the MPs were trying to justify their suggestion, saying it would ensure that the dealers carried out their jobs. 

Awami League MP AKM Bahauddin argued that MP-recommended dealers acted properly.

The committee's final suggestion was that prospective candidates would have to have MPs' recommendations to be eligible to apply for dealerships to DCs.

At the August 8 meeting, MP Motahar Hossain said previously onion prices were Tk 24 to 25 per kilogramme but had risen to Tk 50.  “Who will look after the matter?” he questioned.