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FBCCI goes to polls Oct 12

Aspirants seeking for blessings' from political camps

By Shahriar Karim
As the election of the country's apex trade body FBCC1 nears, aspirants for the top posts are busy in behlnd-the-scene parleys to get the much-needed blessings from political camps and power brokers in the business circle, sources said.
Meantime. Chief Election Commissioner of FBCC1 or the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and industry Prof. 411 Ashraf has resigned all on a sudden Tuesday. Ashraf is also a ruling party lawmaker.
Sources close to Ali Ashraf, who is also the chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on finance ministry, said Ashraf resigned because he is going to run for the presidency. However, his candidature is subject to approval by the party high-ups. they said.
Meanwhile, the authorities finalised yesterday the schedule for the FBCCI election to be held
on October 12. The last date for filing nomination papers is August 14 while publication of die voter list is August 17. The new executive committee is scheduled to take over at the annual general meeting on October 21.
Sources said Yusuf Abdullah Haroon and Salman F Rahman, former FBCCI presidents, are also keen to vie again for the presidency. One of them will have to give way to the other as both of them are likely to seek blessings of the ruling party high-ups. they said. Both of them enjoyed ruling party support when during their previous stints.
Both Haroon and Rahman liad a meeting in the presence of an influential business leader yesterday to decide who would run for the election. But the meeting was indecisive, the sources said.
Sources also said three influential business leaders had a meeting with ruling party high-ups on Monday night to decide whom the ruling party would support.
Haroon and Salman told the Daily Star yesterday that they have not decided on running for I he presidency.
"I haven’t decided anything. However. I want to see a new face at the top post of country’s apex trade body,” said Haroon. He will decide soon after discussing the matter with “like minded people."
Salman Rahman also said he is yet to decide whether to contest the upcoming FBCCI election.
MA Rouf Chowdhury, who ran for the presidency on the previous occasion, has already declared that he would gun for the top post this time. too. He has already become a member of Gazipur Chamber.
Mohammad Ali. a Narayan-ganj-based businessman representing the Edible Oil Association. will Tight for the vice-president slot. Three others including Shafiullah Chowdhury of the Corrugated Sheet and Packaging Association and Dastagir Gazi of Plastic and Rubber Product Manufacturing Association have already declared their candidature for the post.
There is also a move by some influential chambers and businessmen to have a candidate with good credentials who would work for the business community without any political bias.
There are others who want to see a businessman from the op-position camp. But they are yet to find one.
But the biennial FBCCI elections will as usual draw top politicians and power brokers into the fray, said business sources, adding that the race has become a dirty game- where money and political connection matter most.
Business people also alleged that some aspirants have started buying votes.
Meanwhile, sources said Bangladesh Bank has taken a move to have bank loan defaulters barred from contesting elections of business, chambers and trade associations including the FBCCI. The central bank will send its suggestion to the Finance Ministry soon, the sources said.
However, a move by a section of incumbent executive members of FBCCI to ban the bank loan defaulters from taking part in the election hit the rock at a board meeting. Instead, the board said that a person can be barred from contesting the polls only if he is convicted by the court for defaulting bank loan.