Big houses, big cars for senior officials, all this must change: MA Mannan

The planning minister MA Mannan on Monday said changes will have to be brought about in allotting luxurious cars and houses to influential officials as efforts to maintain austerity in all sectors are underway.

The minister came up with this remark while speaking as a chief guest at a dialogue organised by Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and Nagorik Platform at Bangabandhu International Conference Center in Dhaka.

Sultana Kamal, former advisor of caretaker government, presided over the dialogue titled 'How could the state of disadvantage population be reflected in the national budget during the period of IMF?'  

The planning minister said, "It is fair to call a spade a spade. The truth is that the poor are deprived. I have seen how they are deprived, mostly for systematic causes. The government allocation doesn't reach to their doorsteps all the time. IMF isn't a factor here and we are not dependent on IMF."  

He said IMF didn’t impose any conditions on us. Whatever we are asked to abide by is not conditions. These are rather requirements. There is pressure of inflation in the country, which was decreased slightly in the last month. Wages have also been raised.