Chattogram sea port: All business dominated by AL men

For 17 consecutive years, the container handling business at Chattogram port has been dominated by seven companies. Some of these companies are owned by Awami League leaders or their family members, while others are owned by businessmen close to Awami League officials.

Occasionally, these organisations secure contracts by manipulating tenders. At other times, they are awarded work through direct tender Due to the lack of competition, container handling costs at the port have risen, and traders pass on additional expenses to the general public by increasing the prices of goods.

Saif Powertech Limited is one of the seven companies. Sources related to the port indicate that its managing director, Tarafder Ruhul Amin, has close ties to former Awami League Minister of Shipping Shajahan Khan, Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury (known as Liton Chowdhury), the former Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Shipping Ministry, and former local MP MA Latif.

MH Chowdhury Limited and Basir Ahmed and Company Limited are owned by AJM Nasir Uddin, the former Mayor of Chattogram and General Secretary of the City Awami League, along with his family.

Another company, Everest Port Services Limited, was co-owned by AJM Nasir Uddin and Alauddin Nasim, former protocol officer for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and a former Member of Parliament for the Awami League from the Feni-1 Constituency. It is currently owned by Nasim's brother, Jalal Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury, and his wife, Farzana Wahid Khan.

A & J Traders is owned by Ekramul Karim Chowdhury, a former Member of Parliament for the Awami League from Noakhali Sadar Constituency. The managing director of FQ Khan and Brothers is Abu Sharif, who has no known political affiliations.

Fazle Ikram Chowdhury, managing director of Fazle and Sons Limited, belongs to the influential Chowdhury family of Chattogram, which has connections to both the Awami League and BNP.

Containers at Chattogram Port are loaded and unloaded through 12 jetties across three terminals. Saif Power Tech operates four jetties at the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT), the largest and most equipped terminal, and two jetties at the Chittagong Container Terminal (CCT).

The remaining six jetties at the General Cargo Berth (GCB) are controlled by the other six organizations. This arrangement has remained unchanged for 17 years.

Contractors receive payment from the Chattogram Port Authority for loading and unloading containers, with the amounts established through a tender process. If there were genuine competition, the costs of container management could be significantly reduced.

Port personnel indicate that the container handling business requires relatively low investment, with guaranteed high profits. However, those close to the government have secured contracts for inflated sums, with the monetary value exceeding Tk 20 billion. Political influence has effectively barred others from entering the business.

The Awami League government fell on 5 August during a student uprising. On 8 October, M. Sakhawat Hossain, the shipping adviser of the interim government, visited Chattogram Port and announced that all future tenders will be open to competition.

He stated that conditions would be revised to prevent the same company from repeatedly securing contracts. Sakhawat Hossain acknowledged that there have been numerous irregularities at the port, mentioning that many licenses are granted illegally and assuring that the situation is under their scrutiny.

Saif Powertech handled 65 per cent of the port’s containers through the six jetties. In 2006, the company was appointed as the local representative for the operation and maintenance of gantry cranes at the port, benefiting significantly during the Awami League’s tenure.

A prime example of the support Saif Powertech received from the Ministry of Shipping, Parliamentary Committees, and port officials is the tender for operating the New Mooring Container Terminal. This terminal was intended to be the first port-centric foreign investment in Bangladesh. However, in 2007 and 2008, the caretaker government almost finalise the project.

After the Awami League returned to power in 2009, the tender process was cancelled due to interventions by Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury, then chairman of the parliamentary standing committee on the shipping ministry, and Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan.

It took another six years for the terminal to become operational. In 2015, the port authority issued a tender to divide the four jetties of the terminal into two packages, but the conditions were structured so that only Saif Powertech was deemed eligible.

Sources at the port have reported that Saif Powertech partnered with AJM Nasir’s company, MH Chowdhury Limited (30 per cent), and Ekramul Karim Chowdhury’s company, A&J Traders (30 per cent), for a tender.

The contract value for the two projects at the New Mooring Container Terminal was approximately Tk 990 million. Saif Powertech was awarded the job without approval from the Cabinet Committee, leading to objections from the Cabinet Division. However, it is said that the then shipping minister, Shajahan Khan, “managed” the situation.

Following the fall of the Awami League government, Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury went into hiding, and Shajahan Khan was arrested and imprisoned.It was not possible to obtain their comments.

Tenders have never been called for the operation of the New Mooring Container Terminal. Instead, Saif Powertech has been awarded the job on a six-month basis through a direct procurement method.

In July, the company was given work for the 11^th time through this approach, which will expire on 7 January. The total contract value for managing the New Mooring Container Terminal has reached Tk 9.02 billion. It is important to note that in the direct procurement method, a preferred company is selected without any tender process.

Similarly, over the past 17 years, Saif Powertech has consistently been awarded the Chittagong Container Terminal through negotiations, tenders, and direct procurement methodf. In 2019, they secured the contract to operate the terminal for six years at a cost of approximately Tk 3.04 billion, which will expire in November next year.

Tarafder Ruhul Amin, managing director of Saif Powertech, told Prothom Alo that they have received many contracts through tender as an eligible company and expressed a preference not to take on jobs awarded via direct procurement. He stated, “In 2022, we informed the port in a letter requesting that tenders be called in an open manner.”

In response to allegations of securing contracts due to his connections with Awami League ministers, parliamentarians, and other influential individuals, Tarafder Ruhul Amin said, “If this allegation is true, why did the process of transferring the New Mooring Terminal to a foreign operator begin with the intervention of Salman F Rahman during the Awami League government?”

According to port sources, Salman F Rahman, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s private industry and investment advisor, was an influential figure in controlling contracts for government projects. Tarafder Ruhul Amin was not on that side. He maintained a close relationship with Noor-e-Alam Chowdhury (known as Liton Chowdhury), a cousin of the former prime minister though.

To gain closer ties with influential members of the Awami League, Tarafder Ruhul Amin began sponsoring Chittagong Abahani. In 2014, he became the chairman of the club’s football committee, and a year later, he sponsored the Sheikh Kamal International Club Cup football tournament. Subsequently, he established a team called Saif Sporting Club.

Sources indicate that Shamsul Haque Chowdhury, Secretary General of Chittagong Abahani and a member of the parliamentary standing committee related to the Ministry of Shipping, facilitated the opportunity for Tarafder Ruhul Amin to connect with the Sheikh family through football sponsorship.

Additionally, Saif Powertech has been operating the Kamalapur Container Depot in Dhaka and the Pangaon Naval Terminal of Chittagong Port in Keraniganj for 11 years, extending its influence beyond Chattogram Port.

More than two decades ago, former mayor AJM Nasir entered the port business as a partner in an organisation named MH Chowdhury Limited. During the previous caretaker government, the company secured the contract to operate a jetty at the port through a negotiation. It has since operated that jetty for 17 consecutive years via tender processes.

In 2014, following the Awami League's controversial election victory that led to their second consecutive term, another company involved in container jetty management came under the control of AJM Nasir Uddin. This company is M/s Basir Ahmed and Company Limited.

Relatives of Bashir Ahmed allege that AJM Nasir has added his wife, Shirin Akhtar, to the ownership of this company. Bashir Ahmed's elder brother's son, Nuruzzaman, told Prothom Alo, "Taking the ownership wasn’t enough and they have harassed us by filing a case in our name. We used to live in fear and had to run away from home."

After the fall of the Awami League government, Mohammad Salah Uddin began managing the business on behalf of AJM Nasir, who had gone into hiding. He is now the Managing Director of M/s Bashir Ahmed Limited. He told Prothom Alo that there is no question of taking ownership by force. "A case has been filed regarding the deed, but the matter has since been settled," he stated.

During the Awami League's tenure, the family business of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Secretary General Shahadat Hossain Selim underwent a sudden change in ownership. In 2016, the company was restructured as Everest Port Services Limited.

For the first time, AJM Nasir Uddin, former protocol officer to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, along with Alauddin Nasim, an Awami League Member of Parliament for the Feni-1 Constituency, and his brother, Jalal Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury, became partners of the company.

Sources indicate that Shahadat Hossain transferred ownership to these two influential individuals under pressure from Alauddin Nasim. Following public criticism, Nasir and Nasim relinquished their shares, although shares in the name of Nasim's brother, Jalal Uddin Chowdhury, increased, and Jalal's wife, Farzana Wahid Khan, joined the ownership.

Shahadat Hossain declined to comment in detail on the matter but told Prothom Alo that he sold his shares due to a financial crisis, stating, "I paid off my debts and am in the process of reclaiming ownership of the shares."

During the caretaker government in 2007, one operator and two co-operators were appointed for each of the six container jetties at the general cargo berths. However, after the Awami League came to power, the co-operators were not given the opportunity to operate the jetties when tenders were called.

Since then, six companies have been working on the six jetties. In each tender, the bids are structured in such a way that the differences between the bids from different organizations are minimal, even when compared to estimated rates.

Fazle Ekram Chowdhury, president of the Berth Operators, Ship Handling Operators, and Terminal Operators Owners Association, which manages the jetties, told Prothom Alo that companies were awarded contracts based on their qualifications, not political connections.

However, concerned parties claim that these tenders are merely for show, allowing the same companies to receive contracts repeatedly. The tender conditions appear designed to favor certain institutions.

Akhter Kabir Chowdhury, secretary of Chattogram Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik, informed Prothom Alo that a syndicate has formed around container management contracts at the port, with certain groups receiving work for years. He noted that following the fall of the Awami League during the student uprising, there is now an opportunity to introduce transparency. To combat corruption at the port, he emphasised the need for transparency and accountability in the multimillion-dollar contracts.

Akhter Kabir stated, "Now that another class of beneficiaries has emerged, we must ensure they do not reclaim control over the business as before."