(Courtesy NewAge)
Giasuddin Al Mamun is the typical fortune hunter, refusing to remain in the class he was born in and determined to elevate him to the upper elite wealthy class of the society. To materialize his dream, he didn’t miss the first opportunity that came his way. He made his way to come close to first kid of the country and very soon although he was simply a salesperson of a street side family drug store, he started visiting the house of the country’s president and eventually started living there. The rest is history, within the next 25 years; he ruthlessly made use of the proximity with the son of prime minister and ex-president and turned into one of the wealthiest business tycoons of the country.
During this journey he allegedly did many wrongdoings. These may include,
1. Abuse of his friendship of First Kid Tareq to get bank loans.
2. Intimidating other businessmen or government officials who posed any obstacle to his business blitzkrieg.
3. Blackmailed corrupt businessmen and government officials.
4. Misappropriation of government property by abusing his connection.
However what he has never been accused include,
1. Murder or terrorism.
2. Rape or Torture.
3. Conspiracy
4. Destruction of public property tec.
If you are asked to find some positive things about him you can say,
1. This guy did spend the ill gotten money in Bangladesh, building industries, hotels, resorts, professional TV channels.
2. His money probably was not siphoned out of the country to pay for princely livelihood of his kids. Many government high officials are siphoning millions of taka every month for their kids.
Anyway, this guy was convicted yesterday. Not for doing what public believe he did. But for doing something what public do NOT at all believe in. And this verdict came after he was remanded (questioned in custody) total of 60 days so far, which is a record breaking high in the history of Bangladesh.
Fellow Bangladeshi Faiyaz Zamal puts it this way,
Giasuddin Al Mamun, the principal accomplice of Tarique Rahman’s corruption deals, has been given a three-year prison sentence today for his failure to report his wealth statement to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on time.
The ACC served Mamun a notice on February 18 to submit his wealth statement to the commission within 72 hours. However, according to various newspaper reports, Mamun was taken under the Joint Force (JF) custody on January 31, but was not officially shown as arrested until March 26.
Now when ACC summoned him for submission of his wealth statement, he was actually in the Joint Force custody. I am not a lawyer, but as far as my common sense says, it was the JF’s duty to let him submit the wealth statement as he was under their custody. Not only that, the ACC did not even allow his wife to submit the statement on his behalf.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that he is innocent or was not involved in any corruption. But giving him 3 years jail term for somebody else’s fault is not justice. The current anti corruption drive by the government has a huge public support, and I am sure the majority of people of Bangladesh would like to see corrupt people like Mamun behind the bars. But bypassing the due process would not set a good example; it’ll only create sympathy for corrupt persons like Mamun and will undermine the whole anti corruption drive.
What a shame! After all these days of remand, the government has to apply this sort of shameless lie to sentence Mamun!
This is a sad state affair when the first sentence of the most talked about corrupt is based on fabrication and lie on the part of the government.
June 8, 2007 at 12:18 am
It seems the present govt. is as bad in justifying its acts as it is good in hunting the kleptocrats.
June 8, 2007 at 11:09 am
It proves “mystic power” had thought Mamun would be THE key to bring down TZ and sincerely believed Mamun has all ingredients to make it happen. Obviously Mamun did not have much to satisfy ‘their’ desire. Next one was ‘Smaraat Babar’ and that is still going. So far what was revealed of ‘Samraat Babar’, appears not that helpful to stick dirt on KZ and her family. Average public and BNP supporter for last few months are going through a bit of roller coastal to grasp an understanding of all these cases and whereabouts. Mystic power was able to provide climax and sensation but short lived ones, and not caused a super quick degradation of reputation of KZ & families, means next vote are not yet to be sure for them and more time (and more stories) is needed.
‘Mystic Power’ expected media prints must have ‘authentic’ sources, thus before doing some genuine search they jumped on gun and ‘marched on’. But soon bogged down realizing media prints and facts-truths are TWO Different things. So much for ‘intelligence’. But by then it was too late for their brain cells to feel reality as they were swimming in euphoria of newly tasted ‘power’. They were sure in January that as month passes major damages will fold on to KZ & families, so it was OK to enjoy festival mood of ‘fishing’ & indeed it was a ‘great fishing season’. But 5 months passed and mostly an ‘egg’ was passed yesterday on their one of ‘guaranteed KZ & family dirting mozeza’. “kuch poroa nehi” “International dirt” was ‘handy’ and “Smarat Babar” was pulled. But Oh my God! this new ‘fishing” indeed ‘dirted Samraat Babar’ but “kecho khurte shaap ber hoie ge che” as ‘Hasina Saga’ rolled out. Some where something malfunctioned. Entire ‘entourage’ is called in, planned, executed but only a low life was found to be used for “KZ the murderer” episode. “Daud Ibrahim” card is popular in another nation but not much in BD. But hey! Presently ‘anything’ should be tried to minimize ‘Hasina Saga’ and bring back early months euphoria. That card is now being played against TZ.
June 11, 2007 at 7:59 am
I don’t know who is Faiyaz Zamal…his profession or where about but one thing I should say if Mr. Zamal has that much credibility and courage to criticize judgement of Mamun he should challenge the judgement officially. You know the case of sue against ETV.
Why we are thinking that Mamun was trapped to get punishment….now things are going by law and no doubt Mamun was punished within the frame of law. In Bangladesh so many criminals received “cross-fire” doing less crime then Mamun
June 13, 2007 at 8:03 am
So guys, I am sorry that i don’t have much knowledge about either this individual or incident, and consider this a dumb question – but i am still left feeling confused what this guy has been convicted with. There were a lot of foreign names (to me) thrown in the article, so i am not particularly oriented to this information. Shed some light please?
June 15, 2007 at 6:02 am
“1. This guy did spend the ill gotten money in Bangladesh, building industries, hotels, resorts, professional TV channels.
2. His money probably was not siphoned out of the country to pay for princely livelihood of his kids. Many government high officials are siphoning millions of taka every month for their kids.”
Does that justify ill-gotten money?
If all the ill-gotten money are utilised within an a country as capital investment people should be able to earn money in illegal ways?
Have we changed our morality already?
Or are we, Bangladeshis, now attempting to justify/validate corruption?
Am I missing something from your post (since I have read it more than two times)?
Only one crook has been caught and punished. Many more remains. If all the corruption stories of last 25 years are recorded properly, it will be thicker than Iliad and the Ramayan put together.
What does it take for our conscience to merely acknowledge that corruption indeed took place during all the regimes. Some more so, than others? Is it not time for us to “cleanse” our souls of this morally corrupt practice from our society, economy? Or, should we be proud that we’re labeled as “The Most Corrupt Nation” By Transparency Int’l. year after year.
Personally, I think that as a nation we should stand up again. We have done it in 1952, 1969, 1971–and yes, we had changed our nations fate all three times. We’re still capable of it. Not through an armed revolution, I am not suggesting that. Mere acknowledgment, supporting the present CTG, allowing the due process of law take its own course and time.
Alas, Bangladeshis are too impatient, too biased with their foggy notion of right/wrong. Will this ever change?
June 19, 2007 at 8:48 pm
OK let me clarify a bit more,
After all the newspaper allegations, aftre all the earth shattering stories about corruption by Mamun, after tracing all the billions of Dollars stashed by Mamun and yet after interrogating Mamun for a record breaking 60+ days, the government punished Mamun for not submitting his wealth statement.
People believe ( the same people who believe that Mamun is a corrupt) that Mamun was under military custody during all the time he was supposed to be submitting his wealth list. In fact his arrest was a silly drama. Mamun was shown arrested from his home at least 45 days after he was picked up by military and was kept incommunicado. And during mamun’s arrest a gun was also recovered. When all the law enforcement agencies are searching Mamun like carzy on what state of mind Mmaun will be waiting at his DOHS house with gun to be arrested?
So govt prevented Mamun from submitting the wealth statement by interning him at cantonment and then convicted him for the offence they forced him to do.
Now they are coming after Mamun with their second case. This time they will punish Mamun for the gun they planted at his house while they staged the arrest drama.
June 20, 2007 at 5:14 pm
“Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it”
- William Pitt the Younger, The Earl of Chatham and British Prime Minister from 1766 to 1778
The saying is as true today as it was back then. Difference, we are dealing in hundreds of millons and billions today. The ever so popular Military backed CG governement of our great nation’s voracious drive to fulfill representation the vox popul for jutice against the corrupt, is a noble cause that could have cured the nation. But that’s all that it is, a cause. A cause without an action, and if there’s an action, its follwed up by another under the table transaction between the corrupts of the past and the present(who are the noble defenders of our nation). The day ex-MP Mosadeq Ali Falu had been arrested, the king of our kingts in shining armour’s the cheif of the armed forces pocketd 400 crore Taka for his safe keeping till these days. The day Giasuddin Al Mamun had been captured, 5 days later US$ 15 million had been deposited into the account of the Chief’s sister in-law’s account in United Overseas bank in Singapore. Shah Alam (bashundhara group), Shamrat Babar, Coco, Tareq Rhaman, and many more have deposited hundreds of millions of dollars into the overseas accoutns of our noble knights. You can question me about the information above, and all that I can revel is this, when injustice happens infront of you, yet you are told that they are fighting for a just cause, then that little bit of morality thats left inside aperson can grow and become strong enough to revolt against it. But unlike many others like you here I cannot do so, for security reasons. Thus the way to carry out a voice to the people of the nation no matter where ever they are is one that I am not trying to do so. I hope this when read by others can give them and idea of the true situation the grave danger our country is in. The CG’s drive to punish is undermined by the corruption it has taken to by now. I on several occasions have handed over vast sums of the money to the associated parties concerned. The so called hypocricy of the human nature, is one which we must always deal with. Its esay to point fingers and blame others for the misfortunes that occur. But how many has stopped and looked into the mirror and wondered if the person they see before them is to blame in any sense for the degradation of the society around them. We call ourselves bangaldeshis, we take pride in the various revolutions that we have been through the causes we have fought through, but we never take pride in the most unique aspect of ours which in turn I would claim is more evident in our race the nany other, that is the blaming game. Why is it that we see whats going on in front of us, and eventhough its injustice and not right, that we still stay quite. I myself am staying quite now, but trying to voice my opinion through this internent forum across to only a few bangldeshis. Whereas the majority of our peopel do not have access to a computer and internet, thus in a manner its falling on deaf ears. The so called evils we had the corrupted ones are behind bars, but the ones who placed them there are as much corrupted if not more then them. It took 15 years for the inflation rate of bangaldesh to increase within single figures. But it took only a few months for the CG to take it to double figures and increasing. Yet, they are trying to distract us from the dagerous of increasing consumer goods, whcih can lead to a country to its utter and total demise, through this drama of doign the peopel good by getting the corrupted. YEs, many have been corrupted, but they also used that money to setup industries in our coutnry providing emplyment, gdp and foreign Exchange. Bangladesh is not a developed country, but it was on its way to becoming a developing one. If one looks at the economic history of the developed nations fo today they will find the shady stories and businesses that went on to making those countries. A foundation has to be formed to make a start towards becoming a developed country, and capitalism is the way to go as history has taught us. In capitalism not everyone is the millionaire, like all stories there need be good guys and bad guys, who develope a intricate relationship or a nich that makes the story go further till the end. but a coutnry is not a story so there is no end, so there will foever be need for a bad guy and good guy. I guess the point I am trying to make here is the one where one must chose between the lesser of two evils. I chose the corrupts who are imprisoned, for atleast they employed the peopel, helped them for thigns in return ofcourse(but thats the way most of the world is), the price of the consumer goods were less, export and imports used to take place, and most important of all, human right was not so blatently violated.
It is only a few of these generals who are making the money, the rest are left out because they came too late to teh party. The names I shall not provide due to security reasons.
Ladies and Gentlemen, if you feel what I feel, if you see what I see, if you have the moral values and judgements(which I would ask you to abandon for ideals do not exist in reality, thats why they are ideals). Then I request you all, not to let this get un-noticed, not to be blind to the kinghts in shining armors distractions. Rise up, not in revolt, but in your voicing of opinions, and ideas. In your defense of the great moral values that we want to beleive in but haven’t seen acted upon. Thank you.
December 14, 2009 at 10:55 am
“out of sight out of mind” – this is so true.
the last post was made on june 20 2007. Ever wonder where the man is now? and in what condition?
All the politicians sent to custody after 1/11 are out. Well most of them. Whatever he is he cannot be the most corrupted person in Bangladesh. There are rapists murderers who are living peacefully in our society among us.
Even for a second if i assume that he was, the way he was tortured ..no one else was ..
he was actually arrested on 30th Jan and shown on 26th March till then was hidden. No one knew where he was, his family four passed the most brutal time. He has a wife, two daughters who were 3 and 15 then and a son aged 9. They knew he died. The family was interrogated again and again. The integrators would jump into the premises from all sides of the house at midnight and would wake everyone up and ask the same questions repeatedly. Once it was also seen that one of the interrogators with a gun in his hand had moved the youngest child’s hair from her afce when she was asleep. On 26th March night, the family had gone to sleep. There was a knock on the master bedroom door around 3am, one of the staff said “they are here”. Slowly everyone started coming out of their rooms, the voices of many men had awakened them. Everyone was dumped in to his elder daughter’s room and they began searching the house, all of a sudden a man walked into the room, the man was unknown but when he called out Mamoon’s daughter’s name everyone turned around and looked at him. The face was unknown but the voice was known. He then bursted into tears and his elder daughter ran and hugged him tight while his wife fainted and the other two children could not believe what they were looking at. After sometime Mamoon and his wife were called into their room were they have opened the stitches of a couch and put in the gun in front of their own eyes and took it out. A case was placed against him.
Slowly the truth started coming out and he started telling his family how he was tortured :-
1. on the very 1st night all his nails were taken with a plus.
2. he was given electric shocks at every part of his body.
3. he was put into cross fire.
4. he was tied and pushed into a lake and taken out when they knew he wouldn’t be able to take more.
5. he was placed in a small box were there is hardly any space to move and a high voltage bulb was placed on top.
6. knowing that he had brain hemorrhage he was brutally kicked until lather came out of his mouth.
7. they even made him sign on random papers.
Maybe he did have “ill gotten money” but always remember television n papers love to spice up things and they add lots of “zeros”.
- The house in gazipur that is said to be his is actually on 5 katha land and really doesn’t belong to him. His wife inherited that from her grandfather.
- He owes huge amount of loans to different banks, he had taken those to set up his factories. There are a total of 5000 workers working in the factories now, all the factories prohibit child labour and each of the workers family consists of 4 members on an average, that makes it 5000*4 = 20 000.
- all of the property values that have been shown are CURRENT values. value of property, fdrs are not shown as it was at the time of purchasing.
His middle child (son) is mentally disturbed. He is not being able to cope up at school ever since …. His academics .. personal behavior ..everything is going down ..
His younger daughter misses her dad so much she regularly draws pictures of him and her together. It’s so sad that she couldn’t even understand the term “dad” properly ..before that he was taken away ..
There are lot more that can be said ..
People please do not believe in whatever people say. Try to look up. there are lot of things we are not aware of. If this is the story of 1 man, imagine how many men and families were harassed.
December 22, 2010 at 5:05 pm
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