Photo: Messenger
Over the past year, the general consumer has been disoriented by the increase in the prices of goods in the country. The 12th National Parliamentary election was held in such a situation, and the Awami League has formed the cabinet by gaining an absolute majority in the election. In this context, the Ministry of Commerce is set to face a significant challenge from the beginning.
From the outset, the most significant challenge facing the new government has been curbing the rise in commodity prices, a responsibility that rests with the Ministry of Commerce. As a result, the Ministry of Commerce is expected to face the first significant challenge compared to other ministries, according to stakeholders.
Ahsanul Islam Titu, the newly appointed state minister for commerce, addressed this matter when he entered the office for the first time after taking the oath. Consumers blame a syndicate for the prolonged increase in the price of goods in the country. Former commerce minister Tipu Munshi also admitted his helplessness against this powerful syndicate.
However, the new state minister for commerce has spoken out against the syndicate since his first day in office. On the very first day, he announced that he would not allow any syndicate to exist in the market. He also said that those who illegally stockpile products and artificially increase prices will not be exempted in any way.
Concerned individuals have said that the country's most significant problem at the moment is the increase in the price of goods. The prices of some essential products have surpassed the affordability of common people. According to the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a private research institute, the prices of some products have increased by 9 to 400 percent in the last 5 years. For this reason, among the 11 priority sectors in the election manifesto of the Awami League government, commodity price control has been placed first.
One of the 11 priorities of the new government is that the new State Minister for Commerce Ahsanul Islam Titu will be under pressure from the beginning regarding price control. He has assumed responsibility at a time when the prices of products have started to rise again in the market, although the price of the product has already increased. Meanwhile, the price of meat has increased from Tk 650 to Tk 750, and the price of vegetables does not decrease even during the peak season.
When asked about this, Ahsanul Islam Titu, the new state minister for commerce, told The Daily Messenger, “My main challenge will be to bring commodity prices under control. It is among the government’s priorities. Common people are suffering due to high prices of daily commodities. Therefore, commodity price control will be given priority. I can confirm one thing that there will be no shortage of goods in the market. I will ensure that no one can manipulate prices.”
Ahsanul Islam Titu also said, “Transparency and accountability among businessmen will be ensured. If a company operates with transparency and accountability, it will have no chance to manipulate. Especially, those who are major suppliers of oil and sugar, if we can ensure their transparency and accountability, the prices will be within the affordability of the common people.”
In this regard, Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director of CPD, told The Daily Messenger, “Although the immediate past Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi could not control commodity prices and there was no precedent for taking action against syndicates, it is possible to break this syndicate if the government really wants to.”
Earlier, Cabinet Secretary Mahbub Hossain said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has directed the concerned ministers to make all efforts to control commodity prices. In particular, the Prime Minister directed them to work on maintaining a normal supply of products whose demand increases during fasting. The prime minister also advised keeping a watch on those who manipulate the prices of products in the market.
He also mentioned that the prices of products are high, but there is no shortage of food products. Advising those concerned about controlling commodity prices, the head of government said that attention should be paid to those who engage in manipulations. A limited number of groups import food products during Ramadan, and they always want to play a game here. In that case, we have to prepare a little from now on.
Messenger/Sun Yath
