Despite opposition from workers, political parties and even the army, the interim government in Bangladesh intends to go ahead with handing over the operations of a new mooring container terminal at Chittagong port to a foreign company.
Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Sunday said that handing over operations of the terminal does not mean govt is handing over the port itself.
The press secretary said the government wants the world’s largest companies to manage and invest in the Chittagong port. He said, “We want them to invest in the terminals and take on management responsibilities. We have already received assurances from foreign investors-they have pledged to invest $3 billion.”
He added that enhancing the capacity of Chittagong port can have a multiplier effect on Bangladesh’s economy, adding that this will help in realising the chief advisor’s dream of making Bangladesh a manufacturing hub.
Notably, Dubai based DP World is in talks with the interim govt led by Md Yunus to run the New Mooring Container Terminal in Chattogram. The company claims that its investment will reduce congestion at Chittagong Port, lower carbon emissions, and significantly boost the efficiency of the main port of the country.
“This is a land of opportunities. Come to Bangladesh, and let’s make this happen,” Chief Adviser Yunus told the company.
However, almost all political parties are against the move, who say that as the new terminal is already built, there is no scope for more investment there, and there is no reason to handover a profitable terminal to a foreign company. Earlier this month, the 12-party alliance said that under no circumstances should the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) be handed over, nor should the Chattogram Port be leased to foreign entities.
The 950-metre-long NCT of the port has five jetties – four for ocean-going vessels and one for smaller ships on inland routes. At present, local firm Saif Powertec Ltd has been running four jetties.
Not just political parties, even army chief General Waker-uz-Zamanopposedthe move, saying that only an elected government can take such a major decision.
The Chattogram Port unit of the Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal staged a sit-in in Chattogram today, protesting against the govt plan to bring in the foreign operator. The protesters held placards with slogans such as “Cancel the NCT privatisation decision”, “We don’t want tenants to run the port”, and “Local operators are enough, not foreigners”.
On the other hand, container movement have come to a complete halt at the port due to a strike by the Chattogram Custom House operators. As per reports, over 41,000 containers on around 17 vessels were stuck at the port, which could not be unloaded and handed over to importers due to the strike. However, this strike has been called for a different, opposing the National Board of Revenue (NBR) Ordinance brought by the interim govt.