Third death anniversary of Latifur Rahman
Yesterday was the third death anniversary of Latifur Rahman, the CEO and founding chairman of Transcom Group.
Soft-spoken and humble, the visionary and ethical businessman passed away in his sleep on July 1, 2020, at his paternal home in Cumilla after suffering from lung diseases for a long time.
His passing coincided with the death anniversary of his grandson Faraaz Ayaaz Hossain. The student of Emory University in Atlanta, US, was brutally killed by militants during the July 1 attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan in 2016.
Latifur was the founding director of Mediaworld, the company that owns The Daily Star, and chairman of Mediastar, which owns Prothom Alo. The newspapers are the leading English and Bangla dailies in the country.
A respected figure in the global business community, Latifur single-handedly built Transcom Group, one of the biggest and highly respected business houses in the country, with his hard work, perseverance, and entrepreneurial skills.
Born in Jalpaiguri on August 28, 1945, he began his education at St Francis School and then went to St Edmund's School, Shillong, in 1956. He also studied at St Xavier's College in Kolkata.
In 1966, he started working as a trainee at his family-owned W Rahman Jute Mills in Chandpur. The jute mill was the first to be owned by a Bangalee in the erstwhile East Pakistan.
He became an executive and worked there until 1971. But the government nationalised the mill in 1972 and Latifur found himself in a very difficult situation. The family also owned some tea estates in north-eastern Bangladesh but after the independence the price of produce was less than the production cost.
But he did not give up hope. The same year, Latifur came across a Swiss company and started a trading business. There was no looking back after that.
He established Transcom Group in 1981. It is now one of the country's largest conglomerates, with operations in the areas of manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, electronics, beverages, media, consumer, food, and insurance.
Latifur was a member of executive board of ICC-Paris, Bangladesh Better Business Forum, Advisory Committee on World Trade Organisation, and Brac's governing body, and the VP of ICC-Bangladesh.
He was also president of the MCCI, Dhaka for seven terms and of Bangladesh Employers' Federation.
Latifur was also chairman of the Bangladesh government's Trade Body Reforms Committee and a member of Bangladesh Bank's executive board.
The business icon was an honouree of "Oslo Business for Peace Award 2012" and was awarded Business Executive of the Year 2001 by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh. He was also honoured with the "Saarc Outstanding Leader" award and Lifetime Achievement Award.
Latifur Rahman and Shahnaz Rahman's children are Simeen Hossain, Shahzreh Huq, (late) Shazneen Rahman, and late Arshad Waliur Rahman.
A prayer for his departed soul was held at his Gulshan home yesterday.
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