By IANS
Dhaka : Bangladesh’s caretaker government, which completed one year in office Thursday, has dropped four of its advisors for poor performance and inducted five new advisers, while vowing to continue with the roadmap that envisages elections at the end of 2008.
The new advisers are former agriculture secretary A.M.M. Shawkat Ali, former attorney general A.F. Hassan Ariff, executive chairman of Power and Participation Research Centre Hossain Zillur Rahman, former director general of the National Security Intelligence Maj. Gen. (retired) Ghulam Quader and CEO of Campaign for Popular Education Rasheda K. Choudhury.
The four advisers dropped included Mainul Hossain, a vocal spokesman of the government who was in charge of law and parliamentary affairs, and Tapan Chowdhury who dealt with energy security and power projects.
Maj. Gen. (retired) A.S.M. Matiur Rahman and Geeteara Safiya Choudhury also resigned from their posts Tuesday.
The four advisers were asked to resign by Chief Advisor Fakhruddin Ahmed because of “poor performance and controversy over running the administration”, The Daily Star said Thursday.
One adviser had resigned earlier over the mishandling and theft of artefacts that were meant to travel to Paris for an exhibition, since called off.
Two 1,500-year-old Vishnu idols were stolen and destroyed last month, causing a diplomatic row between Bangladesh and France.
The chief adviser is likely to distribute the portfolios of over 16 ministries among the newly appointed advisers soon.
The caretaker government, which took office on Jan 11 last year and imposed a national emergency, was bound by rules that restricted its team of advisers to 11. These rules were amended Wednesday to facilitate expansion of the team to 30.
A small team of advisers, combined with poor coordination, has baulked the task of governance for the caretaker government that, although supposed to hold elections within 90 days, has given itself close to two years, from January 2007 to this year-end.
The government has promised to stick to the poll timetable. Mainstream political parties clamouring for early polls, including the Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, have expressed the hope that the reshuffled team would keep the momentum of poll preparations.
“The five newly appointed advisers joined the cabinet at a moment when the caretaker government is facing a public outcry over its failure to contain skyrocketing prices of food grains and people’s confidence in the interim government seems to be reducing,” The Daily Star said.
Bangladesh’s last elected government headed by former prime minister Khaleda Zia completed its term in October 2006. The caretaker government that took office after that deepened the political crisis as Iajuddin Ahmed, who took over the dual office of president and chief advisor, was criticised by political parties for being biased. Iajuddin made way for Fakhruddin Ahmed a year ago.