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Youths for development

British Council study reveals 74pc not interested in politics

Staff Correspondent
***Young Minds Think
Graft to get worse in 5 years (60pc)
Student politics harmful for education (36pc)
Govt decisions not influenced by them (76pc)
Sheikh Mujib, Kazi Nazrul Islam key role models***
A survey revealed that three-quarters of the youth in Bangladesh are not interested in politics but a whooping 79 percent are interested in development.
They think they have little or no influence over government decisions.
The British-Council-commissioned survey also points out that young people are happy in the country but a large por-
tion of them would prefer to live abroad for better job opportunities and educationfacilities.
Only one in four young people in Bangladesh would firmly agree with the statement, "I am interested in politics". The other three would express indifference and be unsure about their capacity to influence national decisions.
Less than one-third of the youth did
Telecom and ICT stakeholders in several meetings with government high-ups urged them to drop the provisions of harsh punishment that they deemed unconstitutional.
Oddvar Hesjedal, chief executive officer of Grameenphone, said, "Under the law, there is a possibility that the regulator may claim that the operator is involved in any wrongdoing."
He said the BTRC would be the single body to play the key role in the whole affair.
"We cannot go for appeal against any decision taken by BTRC. This seems unconstitutional."
Hesjedal said many operators are hesitating to go for 3G (third generation mobile technology) because of the proposed amendment.
"We have to pay for licences and rollout. Under these circumstances, the law could be a fear factor for future investments."
Hasanul Haq Inu, chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on post and telecommunications ministry, said the committee would stand against the proposed amendment.
"I don't believe parliament will pass the bill without making it suitable for the industry," he said.
He hoped that if anything unconstitutional remains in it, the House would consider it.
In Bangladesh, a telecom licence is issued for 15 years. The conditions laid down in the licence might need to be altered to keep pace with the rapid change in technology.
The bill proposed that the regulator could change the conditions in the licence without any consultation with
the operators.
Hesjedal said operators pay for their licences. "So if changes are needed, it should be done in consultation with the operators."
On the proposed amendment, Ahmed Abou Dorna, chief executive officer of Banglalink said, "The new telecom act is actually unconstitutional as it doesn't give the operators the right to appeal.”
"You are actually threatening the existing investments in the country. That includes even arresting and putting officials of companies in custody and not having the right to appeal."
Commenting on the proposal for fine, Dorna said the maximum fine of Tk 300 crore is impractical as some operators do not have a paid-up capital of more than Tk 10 crore.
"This means they are not being penalised, they are being put off business and moreover arrested. What kind of investment climate is this?"
The maximum fine for such offences is $2.5 million in Asian countries, he said.
Mahbub Zaman, president of Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services, said such a law would send a wrong message to the tech savvy generation.
It would discourage prospective investors from putting money in Bangladesh's telecom and ICT sector, he said.
Telecommunication penetration is only 34 percent in Bangladesh. More than 56 million people now use mobile service while only 1 million people have access to the internet.