Court verdict indicates plot behind Padma bridge scam: Joy

Prime Minister’s ICT Affairs Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy today said the Canadian court verdict binning Padma Bridge Corruption Case indicated a plot behind the Padma Bridge scam.

“The Canadian court trying the Padma Bridge corruption case has found no evidence of corruption in the project and dismissed all charges. The court stated that the evidence (allegation) was based on ‘gossip and rumour’. In other words, it was made up,” he said in a facebook post.

Joy, also Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s son, said the people who drummed up the allegations owed an apology to the premier, her Awami League government and the countrymen an apology.

“It is also shameful that a section of our so called civil society immediately took sides against our country in favor of the World Bank. They dragged the reputation of several highly respected, qualified and hardworking people through the mud, people such as my mother’s former adviser Dr. Mashiur Rahman,” he wrote.

Joy added: “they also owe Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, her Awami League Government and all the people whose reputation they hurt an apology. Indeed they owe Bangladesh an apology.”

“Those people who took sides against Bangladesh are unpatriotic,” he said.

The premier’s adviser also alleged that the World Bank allegations were “fabricated” while the global lending agency stopped funds for the multi-million dollar project aimed to “benefit tens of millions of people and transform our south western region”.

“I had seen the evidence myself during the whole episode. It was quite clearly made up as there were no concrete details, just one anonymous source who was never revealed, even to the Canadian court,” he said.

As a matter of fact, Joy said, the World Bank fought the court and claimed sovereign immunity against having to provide further evidence and “so they filed charges but refused to provide evidence of their claims!”

“The World Bank came up with this plot against my mother, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government in an attempt to discredit her. Then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had instructed the World Bank to cancel the funding of the Padma Bridge in order to punish our Government,” Joy said.

He alleged that Clinton visibly did so because Grameen Bank founder Professor Mohammed Yunus was repeatedly asked her to “take action against my mother”.

“I myself was contacted several times during that episode by US State Department officials conveying threats from Hillary Clinton against our Government if we did not back off Yunus,” he said.

Joy said because of him, the World Bank attempted to stop the largest infrastructure project in Bangladesh that would benefit tens of millions of people and transform our south western region.

“Yunus deliberately tried to hurt Bangladesh using a foreign power,” he said.

Joy said Yunus, his family and friends own approximately 30 percent shares of Grameenphone, the largest and most profitable telecommunications company in Bangladesh and these shares were owned through a private trust where they were the sole beneficiaries.

The premier’s adviser said these shares were financed through a multi-million dollar loan from Grameen Bank, “which is illegal since Grameen Bank is funded by donations for micro-credit to the poor and cannot loan this money for private business”.

“Grameen Bank was audited by an independent commission and they found that not a single penny of profit from this trust was ever paid to Grameen Bank, (or) any of its subsidiaries or projects,” he said.

Joy said Yunus also never paid any tax and “these are the secrets that Yunus was trying to protect in asking for help from Hillary Clinton”.

Source: BSS