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Business barons face off today

Reform fails to stop extravagant electioneering for FBCCI polls

M SHAMSUR RAHMAN
Bangladesh's apex trade body, the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industries (FBCCI) goes into polls today with a changed electoral process aimed to reduce costly election campaigns and put brakes on 'dirty publicity'.
The election, which was stuck in a long-drawn legal tangle, will this year have two tiers. In the first phase, the directors will be elected and in the second, the elected directors themselves will elect one president and two vice-presidents for a two-year term.
Under the reformed electoral process, 24 directors will be elected to office through a direct balloting. Fourteen others -- seven each from Chamber and Association groups -have already been nominated as directors by the government.
Two groups alternately share the presidency and this year it is the Association group's turn.
But the changes have failed to curb such expensive electioneering even in the very first year although two of the presidential runners Abdul Awal Mintoo and M A Awal have already been made directors thanks to the changed system.
The other two candidates, whose fate hinges on direct balloting, are former director A Rouf Chowdhury and industrialist Abdul Matlub Ahmad. Both candidates along with Mintoo are spearheading three panels entailing representatives from an array of trade bodies.
A total of 64 candidates -- 39 from the Association group and 25 from the Chamber -- are in the run for directorship. A total of 1,193 voters -- 257 from the Chamber group and 936 from the Association group are scheduled to elect a new leadership.
Businessmen in general see this year's election as a crucial one as the new leadership will be steering them
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to face post-MFA (multi-fibre arrangement) beyond 2004.
With the official campaign for the polls ending on Saturday, the candidates are busy trying to seal expensive deals with the voters to ensure their smooth entry to the FBCCI executive committee, which will elect a president and two vicepresidents in its August 27 meeting.
Although the government brought changes to the election rules, expensive deals and backstage parleys are being orchestrated, drawing powerbrokers and even few politicians onto the scene. Rumours are rife that both Mintoo and Matlub are enjoying the blessings of two different factions of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
Mintoo is learnt to be enjoying the favour of the Prime Minister's Office while Matlub is rumoured to have the patronage of Hawa Bhaban, an office of the BNP.
This year's election has also seen two candidates embark on a spending spree. Mintoo is already assured of a place in the FBCCI executive committee, but he wants to see his panel sail through to get maximum support for the presidential post.
Matlub, on the other hand, is directly contesting with a full panel and is hoping to win with maximum
candidates from his panel.
And both of the presidential runners have booked hotels in Dhaka to house the "valuable voters". Voters coming from far and wide are the most expensive ones with the hopefuls providing them with food and lodging to ensure that they vote for the 'right persons'.
The Mintoo-led panel has booked Sundarban Hotel and Grand Azad Hotel, while Matlub's panel has registered rooms in Hotel Purbani and Hotel Rajmoni Isa Khan Hotel
A visit to the hotels Saturday midnight revealed enthusiastic voters drinking and dancing to live music.
In Sundarban, the Mintoo-led panel organised a musical show of renowned singer Momtaz. The candidates were meeting voters, mostly chamber leaders from remote places, to make sure that the "valuable voters" were taken care of.
Security personnel are manning the entrances of the hotels to see to it that no- one from the other panel sneaks in and tries to lure the voters away.
At around 1:30am yesterday, voters were found sipping expensive foreign liquor on the third floor of Hotel Rajmoni Isa Khan.
When approached, one of the
voters claimed to be staying on his own in the hotel. Scores of others, however, admitted to enjoying the hospitality of the panels contesting the election.
The general expectations among the business community were that the money spent in the electioneering will be less this year.
But many voters said this year too, the voters were offered Tk 50,000 to Tk 100,000 for a vote.
One voter alleged that a candidate splashed out Tk 500,000 to have his name approved as a nominee from his chamber.
Mintoo told The Daily Star it has become a tradition that voters coming from outside the capital expect candidates to provide them with food and lodging.
He admitted to having talked to the government high-ups about the FBCCI election.
Matlub, however, denied paying to keep voters in any hotel.
Its against election rules, he said, adding that he has many friends who happen to be members of parliament. He also denied to be enjoying blessing from any quarter.
Former FBCCI director A Rouf Chowdhury at a press conference yesterday alleged that this year's election campaign has been even dirtier and staggering spending is on to buy votes.