Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, Dr. Shafiqur Rahman has issued the following statement on 18th June, 2017 expressing deep concern at the continuous price hike of the essentials including rice, lentils, oil, flour, sugar, spices, fishes and beef.
“The countrymen, particularly the middle class, lower income and poor people have been suffering the most due to continuous price hike of the essentials including rice, lentils, oil, flour, sugar, spices, fishes and beef. But the government is not taking any effective steps to curb the price hike.
Even before the announcement of the proposed budget, price of the essential commodities started to go up. But after the budget declaration, it became so reckless. In particular, excessive price of rice have made the limited income people’s life deplorable. Rice is being sold 50-70 taka per kilogram. The thick rice, the poor people’s only choice, is being sold at 50 taka per kilogram. Poor people’s sufferings know no bounds. In last one month, price of rice has increased 8 percent and yearly it has increased 46.88 percent.
The reserve of rice has reached at the lowest ever level. Due to advanced flood in the Haor region, the production of rice has been produced 12 lac metric ton less than the previous year. According to a non-government record, the production deficiency has reached at 40 lac metric ton. To meet this deficiency, rice should be imported. But no effective step of the government is seen in this regard. As the government is not withdrawing the imposed taxes from rice, the importers are not becoming interested to import rice. The internal reserve target has not met the target as well. As a result, the rice market has gone beyond the control of the authority. Public sufferings have reached at an alarming level due to continuous price hike of the essentials including rice. But the government has no attention to resolve the mass sufferings.
The government is conducting indiscriminate looting, terrorism, extortion, money laundering and in addition, they have made the public life difficult by imposing various kinds of taxes and VAT. But instead of solving the problem, the government is busy in resisting the opposition and to manage their own benefit.
In this backdrop, I am urging the concerned authorities to undertake effective steps to bring the price of all essentials including rice, lentils, oil, flour, sugar, spices, fishes and beef under the people’s control in order to ease mass sufferings. Otherwise nobody would have anything to do if the price goes beyond people’s level of tolerance.
