From good time to payback time

People may have forgotten that LGRD Minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan once led the most corrupted ministry called Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD). Now, he's leading the army backed BNP faction for a new go round of magical chair. He had good times when he was enjoying the fun flared BNP-Jamaat Alliance. Now, those gold days have been over. Who cares about those oldies? Over zealous Mannan Bhuiya doesn't even need any fromal letter from the ACC to testify against his former party leader Khaleda Zia, the former Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Read the news from BDnews24,

Dhaka, Sept 24 (bdnews24.com) – Former BNP local government minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan Monday said he would testify before the Anti corruption Commission Tuesday in the GATCO corruption case against Khaleda Zia and 12 others.

"I came to know watching a TV news programme that the ACC has decided to summon the former cabinet purchase committee members. I haven't yet received the ACC notice. But I've decided that I'll go to the commission Tuesday even if the letter doesn't reach me for some reason," Bhuiyan said to reporters.

The ACC Sunday summoned six members of the cabinet committee on purchase to its office in Segun Bagicha at 11am Tuesday.

The six are all former ministers who had sat on the BNP-led coalition government's cabinet committee on purchase.

A senior member of the purchase committee at the time, Bhuiyan said, "I've spoken to some of the people concerned in the meantime, they told me they've also decided to go to the Commission."

Bhuiyan would not be drawn into detail on what they might say to the corruption watchdog.

On Sept 2, ACC deputy director Golam Shahriar Chowdhury filed the corruption case with Tejgaon Police Station against 13 people, including Khaleda and son Arafat Rahman Coco.

The first information report (FIR) of the case filed in 2003 alleged Global Agro Trade Company (GATCO), an "inefficient and inexperienced" firm, had been unlawfully awarded the contract to handle containers at Chittagong Port Terminal Yard and Kamalapur Inland Container Depot.

Akbar Hossain, the late shipping minister and son Ismail Hossain Saimon persuaded Coco and Khaleda to intervene to give the work to GATCO, according to the FIR.

Saimon was arrested Monday.

The purchase committee rejected GATCO's bid on November 12, 2003 on the grounds that it had no experience of container handling and recommended a re-tender.

However, the prime minister Khaleda snubbed the committee's recommendation and awarded the work to GATCO, which was unfit for the job, the case alleged.

The members of the cabinet purchase committee in question are former finance minister M Saifur Rahman, local government minister Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, health minister Dr Khandakar Mosharraf Hossain, information minister M Shamsul Islam, agriculture minister MK Anwar and industry minister Matiur Rahman Nizami.

The cabinet secretary acted as the ex-officio member-secretary to the committee.

Dr Khandakar Mosharraf Hossain and AKM Mossharraf Hossain are now in jail.