It's a threat to private companies

Economists and businesses yesterday expressed concern over the government's move to appoint administrators in any company, saying such an attempt is a threat to the private sector.
Their concerns came as the government is taking steps to amend the Bangladesh Companies Act 1994 to appoint administrators in any troubled company like Destiny Group.
Debapriya Bhattacharya, a distinguished fellow of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, said, in case of the companies like Destiny Group, at first the company's existing governance should be used to run it in absence of its top officials.
Secondly, the government should apply the existing law to appoint administrators in such companies.
And even if it does not work, the government should appoint someone judiciously to run the company.
“But, at the same time, the private companies should also behave in a disciplined way,” he said.
Economist Hossain Zillur Rahman said the move is not only a threat to the private sector, but also a sign of dangerous escalation of arbitrary governance.
“The whole process should thoroughly be reviewed,” said Rahman, also a former commerce adviser to the caretaker government.
Such a faulty solution will rather misguide the private companies, he said.
“A powerful and unholy nexus within the government is trying to finalise the amendment for all the companies, setting the Destiny Group as an example,” Rahman said.
The businesses do not support the idea of appointing administrators having 'indemnity power', said AK Azad, president of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry. “The move is a direct threat to the private sector.”
Amjad Khan Chowdhury, president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also opposed the idea of giving 'indemnity power' to such administrators.
“The government should go through a legal process to appoint administrators only in the companies that do not serve greater interest of the people,” Chowdhury said.
“The proposed amendment will be detrimental to the private sector. All the companies cannot suffer for the misdeeds of a single company,” said Asif Ibrahim, president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Earlier, in a joint statement yesterday, International Chamber of Commerce-Bangladesh, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, and Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association also expressed concern over the proposed amendment to the companies act.