Another SEC member Yasin quits

Another member of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) yesterday stepped down apparently bowing to the government's pressure, although he was given a clean chit in the stockmarket probe report.
The member, Yasin Ali, tendered his resignation letter to finance ministry's Banking Division Secretary Shafiqur Rahman Patwari at the latter's secretariat office.
He later told The Daily Star he quit on government instructions.
His resignation came a day after another SEC member Anisuzzaman submitted his resignation letter.
Their resignation will surprise many, as there is no allegation against them in the Ibrahim Khaled-led probe committee report on the stockmarket scam.
A top official of the Banking Division asked the two SEC members to quit on May 3, but they did not respond, insiders say.
An SEC official said despite being repeatedly asked by the Banking Division, Ali maintained that he would quit after finance minister's return from abroad.
In the face of continued pressure, Ali finally resigned yesterday.
Another SEC official said when different controversial proposals were passed in the SEC board meetings in 2009 and 2010, Ali in many cases gave his note of dissent. The Daily Star has obtained those documents.
Yawer Sayeed, managing director of AIMS of Bangladesh, an asset management company, said it is not comprehensible why people who have not been accused are being forced to resign, while no action is being taken against the accused of manipulation.
He said the investors' confidence on the capital market could not be restored until the SEC is restructured through appointment of competent people.
The probe committee in its report on the stockmarket debacle also named some top SEC officials, saying the scamsters succeeded in manipulating the share market due to their failure.
The report categorically blamed the SEC chairman for the historic crashes in the market. The government, however, has not taken any action against those officials.
After publishing the full report on April 30, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said a number of steps would be taken within a couple of days, including appointment of a new chairman. However, there has been no development in this regard yet.
The resignation came in the face of continuous downslide in the share market that even prompted some investors to go for fast unto death in front of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) building yesterday.
The losing spell also continued yesterday morning but later it rebounded, as the institutional investors including state-owned institutions went for bulk buying as per a government direction.
Also yesterday, the Share Investors Association launched a movement to press home different demands including restructuring the SEC within 72 hours.