DHAKA: Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus yesterday blasted the Bangladesh government after it passed a law he said would pave the way for the “ultimate destruction” of Grameen Bank, the pioneering microlender he founded.
The bill passed by parliament tightens the government’s grip on the bank set up to fight poverty, and brings it under ever closer control of the central bank.
Yunus, who was ousted from the lender in 2011 in what was seen as a politically engineered move, condemned the new law and said it “created the opportunity for the government to take 100 percent control of the bank”, with which he shared the Nobel.
“Grameen Bank was created as a bank owned by poor women, and managed by poor women. Its legal structure did not allow any government interference of any kind, except for regulatory oversight,” he said in a statement.
“These amendments fundamentally change the character of the bank. With these amendments, the government has opened the door for its ultimate destruction. What a shame for the nation, and the whole world!”
“I feel extremely sorry that the nation has to go through the unnecessary traumatic experience of seeing a great global iconic institution, created by this nation, be brutally harmed by a group of irresponsible and thoughtless people,” he added.
Finance Minister A M A Muhith defended the law, saying it was a constitutional requirement because the ordinance that created the bank in 1983 must be passed by parliament.
“The Supreme Court has outlawed all ordinances that were enacted by the military regime,” he said on Tuesday. The new law replaces the Grameen Bank Ordinance and brings its finances under supervision of the central bank. AFP
