Monday, May 21, 2007

ex-Bangladesh PM's son admits involvement in wholesale corruptions

Tarique Rahman, eldest son of former Bangladesh PM Khaleda Zia and slain former president Ziaur Rahman, finally admitted to his involvement in large-scale corruption which he blamed largely upon his close friend and business associate Giasuddin Al Mamun.
Reporting this, a vernacular Bangladeshi newspaper, The Manabjamin, printed a signed statement of Tarique given to intelligence agencies on March 12, four days after his arrest on March 8.
Known as 'Mr. 10 percent' for extorting the percentage of money from winners of big work tenders and almost all big trade deals, Tarique, who is also the senior joint secretary general of BNP, one of the Bangladesh's main two political parties which is being headed over the years by his mother, blamed Giasuddin for most of the corruption during the regime of the immediate past BNP-led government. He admitted to having the knowledge of and consent to Mamun's acts and said Mamun had given him a supplementary debit card which he (Tarique) occasionally used to withdraw money from Mamun's overseas bank accounts.
Mamun, who is also in jail awaiting trial and already have admitted to extorting some top businessmen over $1.5m, donated large sums of money towards Tarique's political campaigns after his arrest, Tarique also admitted.
Read The Daily Star story

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