The anti-corruption organisation Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has stated former Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury's explanation concerning the acquisition of wealth abroad and its concealment in the election affidavit is  unreasonable and unacceptable.

These remarks were conveyed through a press release distributed on Sunday, March 3.

Citing disclosing false or insufficient information in an affidavit is legally punishable, TIB has urged the pertinent institutions, including the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), National Board of Revenue (NBR), Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), and Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for thorough verification of the acquisition process and the amount acquired  by the former Land Minister.

In a press release, TIB stated that upon analysing the affidavits of the candidates who contested in the national assembly elections on December 26 of the previous year, they found evidence suggesting that a member of the government's cabinet possesses multiple companies abroad under their name, which were not disclosed in the affidavit. Subsequently, it was revealed through various media reports that this minister had previously served as the Land Minister, which he confirmed during a press conference held on Saturday.

TIB dismissed the former land minister's question as baseless concerning the motive behind TIB's revelation of information regarding acquiring assets abroad. TIB clarified that disclosing such information intends to uphold transparency and accountability regarding the income and assets of candidates participating in elections.

In this context, Iftekharuzzaman, the executive director of TIB, stated that TIB had developed a dashboard and conducted an analysis of data to illustrate the comprehensive, constituency-wise, and party-wise comparative overview based on the affidavits of 6,07 candidates who participated in the last four national elections. The objective is to furnish information regarding election candidates, including their income and assets, and present a comparative analysis of the income and assets declared in the affidavits for public interest.

However, the issue of acquiring wealth abroad has garnered attention due to the former land minister's declared wealth being inconsistent with his actual wealth. During the press conference, the minister had expressed dissatisfaction, alleging that TIB's actions aimed to embarrass him and the government. Nevertheless, TIB maintains that it's normal for individuals to feel embarrassed when accurate information is disclosed.

The executive director of TIB remarked that the former land minister's excuse of the absence of a separate column in the affidavit for declaring property held abroad as 'unreasonable and unacceptable' is unfounded. He stated, "Firstly, the former land minister has concealed information in the affidavit. Disclosing false or insufficient information in the election affidavit is a punishable offence. In the affidavit, a candidate must provide details of all their assets, regardless of location, whether in the country or abroad."

He criticised the former minister's attempt to justify the omission by arguing the lack of a dedicated section for foreign assets. "He is attempting to absolve himself with the weak argument that there is no separate column for assets abroad. His claim that foreign assets were omitted because they were not included in the income tax return is baseless."

Dr Iftekharuzzaman emphasised, "According to Article 147(3) of the Constitution, eight categories of constitutional office bearers, including ministers of the country, are prohibited from holding lucrative or salaried positions, participating in the management of profit-oriented companies, associations, or organisations. In essence, the former land minister violated this constitutional provision by taking office, which is unacceptable under any circumstance."

TIB regards the statement made by the former land minister that he did not utilise funds from the country to establish assets abroad and the proposal to investigate it as utterly 'absurd'. Violations of constitutional and legal provisions, including money laundering, are not subject to investigation committees; therefore, TIB urged relevant institutions, including ACC, NBR, BFIU, and CID, to ensure proper accountability through appropriate legal channels.