Garment makers seek relief from shutdown
Garment makers yesterday urged the government to find out ways to save the garment sector and the economy from the negative impacts of hartal.
“Businessmen have become hostages. They want to run their business uninterruptedly,” Shafiul Islam Mohiuddin, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), told reporters after a meeting with Finance Minister AMA Muhith at his office in Dhaka.
“Politicians are doing politics. We should not advise them. But we should find a solution so that hartal won't affect our business.”
“Enough is enough. We want to survive through our business.”
Mohiuddin said the number of bank defaulters will increase by the day as the frequently called shutdowns are taking a heavy toll on the business.
Echoing the garment sector leaders, Muhith said Bangladesh's economy does not afford shutdowns, which hurt businesses.
“We have to find a way out of the hartal. A solution could be found if Jamaat-e-Islami believed in politics.
But Jamaat believes in atrocities.”
He encouraged businessmen to work together to find the way out. “We will be with the businessmen, if they can find out an alternative solution of bypassing the perils of hartal.”
Referring to the banks' refusal to honour inland bills purchases (IBPs) of the garment exporters following the Hall-Mark loan scam, the garment sector leaders urged Muhith to take steps to persuade the banks to honour IBPs.
The banks did not release IBPs worth over Tk 1,500 crore, which they had accepted before the scam unearthed last year, Mohiuddin said.
The apparel sector leaders reiterated their demand for reducing bank loan interest rates, he said, adding that they also asked the minister to ease the rules of loan rescheduling.
“We want the central bank to amend the bank loan rescheduling to a tolerable level as a pile of loans will be classified because of new rules in the banking system,” Mohiuddin said.
AKM Salim Osman, president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association, and Jahangir Al Amin, president of Bangladesh Textile Mills Association, were also present.
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