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ALLEGATION OF UNDER-INVOICING, UD MISUSE IN FABRIC IMPORT

BGMEA threatens BTMA with legal action

STAR BUSINESS REPORT
Rejecting the BTMA's remark on under-invoicing, smuggling and misuse of utilisation declaration (UD) in fabric import by garment manufacturers, leaders of the BGMEA yesterday threatened the BTMA with legal action unless the textile millers apologise for the comments.
"Either the BTMA chairman (MA Awal) will have to prove all his allegations against us within the next seven days or he will seek unconditional apology to us. Otherwise, we will move to court," said Annisul Huq, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
He was addressing a press conference in Dhaka in protest at the Bangladesh Textile Mills Association's (BTMA) press conference held on Saturday.
Huq said woven fabrics worth around $1.75 billion were imported
in FY2003-04 of which, according to the BTMA chief, fabrics worth $1.5 billion, about 90 percent of the total import, were sold in the local market.
"It means that we imported fabrics double than the consumption and the garment manufacturers and custom officials were involved with smuggling," he said.
About the allegation of UD misuse, the BGMEA chief said there is no scope of importing excess fabrics as the UD is circulated after examining the letter of credit (L/C), invoices and order sheets based on SRO by the UD committee.
"Moreover, he (MA Awal) said that we are importing suiting fabrics at the rate of 20 cent through UD facility. Can he submit any document where the UD committee permitted a garment manufacturer such import?" Huq questioned.
"We, the BGMEA members, denunciate the BTMA chief for his baseless, fictitious and intentional statement which hampered the
image of the garment industry both in home and abroad," Huq added.
Terming the Tk 15,000 crore investment in the textile industry baseless and incorrect, he said according to the BTMA directory the investment figure is around Tk 20,000 crore.
Besides, its not true either that excluding Bangladesh there is no bonded warehouse in other countries, Huq said adding that almost all the countries have bonded warehouse facilities. "It is in different forms for different trades."
"Mr Awal cited examples of China, India and Pakistan which are already self dependent on fabrics and fabrics raw materials," he argued.
If bonded warehouse facility is abolished, the woven sector will collapse in no times, he noted.
Huq, however, did not rule out any discussion between the two bodies. The BGMEA and the BTMA can still sit together and solve the controversial issues, he hoped.