Cenbank's decision to restrict journalists' entry not very mature: ACC lawyer Khurshid 

The Bangladesh Bank's decision to impose a strict restriction on journalists' access to its building is not very mature, Anti-Corruption Commission lawyer Khurshid Alam Khan said today (11 May).

"If media personnel cannot enter the central bank, how will people get to know about the country's economy? People of the country want to know how the country's financial system, how banks are running. What the central bank is doing by not allowing journalists to enter, I would say is an immature decision," he said while speaking as a guest on a talk show about institutional corruption in Bangladesh on DW's programme "Khaled Muhiuddin wants to know'.

"If journalists have free access to the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, why not the central bank?" he asked.

Noting that bank mergers happen across the world, he said, "The governor of Bangladesh Bank started taking a step [in this direction]. The latest central bank merger moves, however, were not well received.

"The central bank could not remain firm in its decision on the merger. When Basic Bank made the move, National Bank said it would not merge with UCB Bank, then the central bank kept on compromising."

He further said, "The weak condition of the banking sector of Bangladesh is not due to mistakes. It has reached such a level due to various irregularities and corruption…Someone took bribes, someone offered bribes, someone benefited, and bank officers also took advantage. The central bank is also responsible here."

He added that among the financial crimes that are under investigation in the ACC so far, there are corruption cases in most banks.

From now on, journalists will only be able to visit the spokesperson of the bank at its building using a specific permit issued by the bank, Mezbaul Haque, the Bangladesh Bank spokesperson, told The Business Standard on Thursday (25 April).

"Journalists will also be able to visit other officials of the bank if the officials issue them a permit. Journalists will no longer be able to freely enter any department of the central bank as before," he added.

Earlier, on 10 March, some newspapers published the list of weak banks in the country. The Bangladesh Bank has identified 38 banks, including six state-owned banks, as weak lenders out of the 54 analysed.

Of the 54 banks, 12 are in critical condition, of which nine have already moved to the red zone. The other three out of 29 banks in the yellow zone are very close to the red zone.

mmediately after the publication of the reports, the governor of the central bank stopped allowing journalists to enter any of its buildings to collect information. Besides, central bank officials who issued passes to journalists in the last one month had been show-caused.

Terming the restriction as "unacceptable", Sushasoner Jonno Nagorik (Sujan) Editor Badiul Alam Majumder said, "Journalism is a profession recognised by the state. As a state institution, Bangladesh Bank should be accessible by journalists to obtain information. People get information through journalists. What is the governor trying to hide now?"

On 27 April, the Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) expressed deep concern and strong condemnation over restriction on journalists' access to the Bangladesh Bank.

In a statement, DUJ President Sohel Haider Chowdhury and General Secretary Akhter Hossain said obstructing journalists from performing their professional duties is a threat to freedom of the press.