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Wednesday, December 12, 2007

[ALOCHONA] Re: NIKO Gas Deal : Hasina, Khaleda sued

Dear Alochocks

 

May I request you all not to mislead us all by giving false information. Price of one thousand scft (standard cubic feet) of Natural Gas is around US$ 5.00 (Depends upon the quality). Someone in this forum quoted the same price for per cft. The point is that the country lost total 24000 crores of taka because of negligence/mismanagement/extortion of two ladies. How much percentage is this of our national annual development budget? Do you want us to digest this figure? In the same token may I ask who is responsible for the hanging corpses in Rangs Bhavan? Mr. Legal advisor cannot shrug off his responsibility by putting all the blame on the contractor. Who appointed this contractor? Under which ministry is this department? What is past experience of this contractor in demolishing this type of buildings? Why there was such rush to demolish this building? Were they preparing to construct the road across the building tomorrow? Don't we have more important issues to handle than this stupid Bhavan? I refrain myself in saying if there was any underhand deal?

 

In the last, I want to tell, the life of a human being is priceless. Let the court decide about the extortion of Taka 24000 crores. Can this money buy one of the dead?  I know some smart guy will argue that so many person die in Bangladesh during hartals. But tell me, can you justify an unjust with another unjust. Who should be punished for the life the innocent persons whose dead bodies are still hanging or buried inside the building. They did not die because of Sidr or because of floods but because of the audacity of a few handful persons.

 

Regards

 

Junaid Sultan


--- In alochona@yahoogroups.com, mahathir of bd <wouldbemahathirofbd@...> wrote:
>
> Taking it granted , due to agreement with Niko Bangladesh has lost that 24000 crore tk.
>
>
> Whether hasina and khaleda responsibile will be proved in court. previously we have seen newspaper report that ACC has found no link of Khaleda . ACC did not protest it. later we have seen report that ACC is under pressure to involve khaleda and Hasina with Niko case.
>
>
>
> However, with our open eye we can see that due to inexperience, inadeptness and wrog way of anti corruption drive, demolision of small shops and slums, reduction of import of mechinary , reduction of foreign and local investment , the lose of the country is more than 24000 crore tk.
>
> Any economist can calculate it and give us the exact figure.
>
> Who should be sued for this huge loss of the country????????????????????????
> Who should be sued for taking the country "10-15 years back economically "(as mentioned in many editorials)????????????????
>
>
>
>
>
>
> curson curson curzon70@... wrote:
> Dear Alochok:
>
> Do you really think that Bangladesh is that poor, to
> take place that level of corruption?
>
> Use this common sense facts to make sound judgement:
>
> 1) For how many days and weeks the gas field that was
> assigned to Niko in Sylhet was burnt incessantly?
>
> 2) What was the price of that destroyed natural gas
> was in international market at that time?
>
> [Hints: think of the proposed TATA deal in pricing
> gas: Tata wants to pay maximum $4.50 for each cubic
> feet (CFT) and Dhaka insists that TATA pay similar to
> international price: $7.25 per cubic feet (CFT).
>
> 3)Unless reserved gas of that amount was there to be
> extracted, why NIKO had invested hundreds of millions
> of dollars in the first place?
>
> 4) Finally, as of 12/10/2007, since the exchange rate
> of $1=68.55 taka, convert the amount of 23 crores, the
> figure cited by Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in
> the case into US dollar and you can easily find that
> what would have been the price of gas burnt by NIKO
> due to its negligience.
>
> That converted figure in US dollar is not much--it
> sounds resonable. Just because amount in BD taka
> appears huge, don't get carried away believeing that
> it is a gross exegeration.
>
> For, remeber:
>
> 1) The huge difference in exchange rate between Taka
> and Dollar.
>
> 2) According to 2006 published statistic of the World
> Bank, the size of Bangladesh economy measured in
> nominal GDP is $ 64 billion, which, measured in
> Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) is equal to $360+
> billion.
>
> So, there is that scope for corruption.
>
> Otherwise, why NIKO would invest over $100 million in
> the project?
>
> Curzon
>
> --- Haroon@...,
> UNEXPECTED_DATA_AFTER_ADDRESS@... wrote:
>
> > Dear Alochoks,
> >
> > This news is too much to digest! Is that true what
> > they said in the case? Or its just an another eye
> > wash? Range of loss is too large for us. Bangladesh
> > is really too poor for that level corruption.
> >
> > Somebody is abusing the power. Everywhere.
> > Everytime. Even now. We are just victim of time.
> >
> > I am afraid of materialisation of this case.
> > Unrealistic case can be vital. When case proved
> > wrong, victim become hero. It can lead us to a
> > longer dark age.
> >
> > We dont know who will rule us next 10 years!
> >
> > Peacefully,
> >
> > Haroon Rashid
> > Chittagong
> >
> >
> >
> ********************************************************************************************************************
> >
> >
> > NIKO Gas Deal
> > Hasina, Khaleda, 10 others
> > sued
> > Staff Correspondent
> >
> >
> > The Anti-corruption
> > Commission (ACC) yesterday sued former prime
> > ministers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina along with
> > 10 others for inflicting an enormous loss to the
> > state through awarding gas deals to Canadian gas
> > exploration company Niko by abusing their power.
> >
> > In two separate cases -- one
> > filed against Sheikh Hasina and six others, and the
> > other against Khaleda Zia and four others --
> > complainants alleged that primary investigations
> > found involvement of the accused in illegally
> > awarding contracts to Niko for exploring and
> > developing three gas fields in the country.
> >
> > ACC Deputy Director Sabbir
> > Hasan, in the case filed against Sheikh Hasina and
> > her co-accused with Tejgaon police station, said the
> > deal with Niko caused a loss of over Tk 13,630 crore
> > to the government exchequer.
> >
> > In the case against Khaleda
> > Zia and her co-accused filed with the same police
> > station, ACC Assistant Director Mahbubul Alam said
> > although Khaleda Zia was the custodian of the
> > country's wealth as the prime minister, she awarded
> > Niko an opportunity to extract gas worth Tk10,000
> > crore, criminally violating her oath, unlawfully
> > abusing her power, and through corruption.
> >
> > The case also said she did
> > it in collusion with her co-accused, and issued an
> > order for signing of the illegal deal with Niko.
> >
> > The co-accused of currently
> > detained Awami League President Sheikh Hasina are --
> > detained former state minister for energy Rafiqul
> > Islam, former principal secretary to the Prime
> > Minister's Office (PMO) Dr SA Samad, former energy
> > secretaries Dr Towfiq -e- Elahi Chowdhury and M
> > Akmal Hossain, former Petro Bangla chairman
> > Mosharraf Hossain, and Vice-president (South Aisa)
> > of Niko Research Bangladesh Ltd Kashem Sharif.
> >
> > The co-accused of Khaleda
> > Zia are detained former law minister Barrister
> > Moudud Ahmed, detained former state minister for
> > energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain, former acting energy
> > secretary Khandaker Shahidul Islam, and
> > Vice-president (South Aisa) of Niko Research
> > Bangladesh Ltd Kashem Sharif.
> >
> > The cases mentioned that due
> > to the awarding of the deals to an unskilled company
> > like Niko the blow out at Chhatak gas field
> > occurred, resulting in a huge loss to the sate.
> >
> > The common accused in both
> > the cases, Kashem Sharif, who is also a close
> > relative of former energy secretary Dr Towfiq -e-
> > Elahi Chowdhury, allegedly persuaded the other
> > accused as a Niko official.
> >
> > The ACC will investigate the
> > cases and will examine if any body else was involved
> > in making the alleged illegal deals.
> >
> > Hasina is already charged in
> > three extortion cases -- two filed by individuals
> > while the third was filed by the ACC. Moreover,
> > three more corruption cases against her in
> > connection with Meghnaghat power project, and
> > purchases of Mig-29s and a frigate are also
> > currently being heard in courts.
> >
> > The ACC also filed a graft
> > case against former prime minister Khaleda Zia, her
> > younger son Arafat Rahman Koko, and 11 others in
> > connection with violating tender conditions in
> > appointing GATCO, an indenting house, for handling
> > containers in Dhaka Inland Container Depot (ICD) and
> > in Chittagong Port ICD yard despite the company's
> > lack of experience and skills.
> >
> > The High Court however
> > quashed two graft cases against Khaleda Zia field
> > during the last AL regime in connection with
> > Khaleda's house decoration and an airbus purchase
> > during one of her tenures as a prime minister.
> >
> > THE ALLEGATIONS
> > In 1997 Niko Resources Ltd,
> > Canada participated in a tender bid for oil and gas
> > exploration in Bangladesh but was declared unfit by
> > a committee of the Bangladesh government. Later Niko
> > allegedly in collusion with Hasina and her six
> > co-accused collected secret data about Chhatak gas
> > field and some other gas fields having huge gas
> > reserves.
> >
> > Niko submitted a letter of
> > intent in favour of itself for exploring the gas
> > fields in Fenchuganj, Chhatak, and Kamta through a
> > joint venture with Petrobangla, allegedly violating
> > proper procedures. Although the proposal was not
> > filed following proper procedures the PMO forwarded
> > it to the energy ministry recommending it to take
> > 'proper actions'. Later in November 1997, the then
> > energy secretary Towfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury okayed the
> > proposal.
> >
> > On June 28, 1998, Niko again
> > submitted a proposal to the Bangladesh government
> > for developing the 'marginalised' gas field in
> > Tengratila of Chhatak and the 'abandoned' gas fields
> > in Kamta and Feni, and for extracting gas from
> > those.
> >
> > The then energy secretary
> > prepared a proposal for the deal, marking the gas
> > fields as 'marginalised and abandoned' and saying an
> > agreement might be signed with Niko through
> > Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Co
> > Ltd (Bapex).
> >
> > Hasina approved the proposal
> > and her government prepared a draft agreement for
> > Niko in 2001. Hasina also signed a memorandum of
> > understanding (MoU) with Niko awarding it a contract
> > for extracting gas from the three gas fields.
> >
> > Bangladesh incurred a loss
> > of about 1,794 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas worth
> > Tk 13,630.50 crore due to the deal, according to the
> > case documents.
> >
> > In 2003, the then prime
> > minister Khaleda Zia, in collusion with her
> > co-accused including former state minister for
> > energy AKM Mosharraf Hossain gave verbal direction
> > to the officials concerned for arranging the signing
> > of a joint venture agreement (JVA) between Bapex and
> > Niko allegedly for personal gains as well as for
> > Niko's benefit.
> >
> > Through the agreement Niko
> > got an opportunity to extract 1,744 bcf of gas from
> > Chhatak and Feni gas fields putting the country in a
> > loss of at least Tk 10,000 crore, the case alleges.
> >
> >
> >
> > http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=14894
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
> __________________________________________________________
> Be a better friend, newshound, and
> know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now. http://mobile.yahoo.com/;_ylt=Ahu06i62sR8HDtDypao8Wcj9tAcJ
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Is this CTG is better than Ershad in case of political party reform and anti corruption drive ?
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Sobhan Allah- Only Allah flawless
> Alhamdulillah - All praise to be of Allah
> Allah hu Akbar - Allah, the Greatest
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Would Be Mahathir of BD
>
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try it now.
>
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