Past misgovernance caused industrial failures: Adviser

Labour and Employment Adviser Brig Gen (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain on Saturday blamed past misgovernance and political abuse for the failure of the country’s industrial sector, stating that factory owners used to hold political power and parliamentary positions, leading to exploitation rather than fair governance.

“Many ministers and MPs of the former regime, who also won factories, fled abroad without paying workers' wages. Their assets, including houses, cars and land, are being liquidated to compensate the workers,” the adviser said while speaking at a shadow parliament organised by Debate for Democracy on labour rights.

He said efforts are underway to issue red alert via Interpol to bring back absconding owners who escaped without clearing workers’ dues.

Labour and Employment Secretary AHM Shafiquzzaman attended the event as special guest, while Debate for Democracy Chairman Hasan Ahmed Chowdhury Kiron presided over the session.

Referring to the July Uprising, Sakhawat said the movement saw significant participation and casualties among students and also labourers, driven by long-standing frustration and injustice.

He also alleged that the Rana Plaza rescue of a female worker 17 days after the collapse was a “staged drama,” and blamed previous government negligence for the disaster.

Chairman Kiron warned that unless the legitimate demands of workers are fulfilled, the achievements of the July revolution could be lost.

He urged political parties to clearly commit to fair wages and worker rights in their election manifestos, ahead of the upcoming national polls.

Kiron claimed that after the fall of the Awami League government, both local and foreign vested interests tried to destabilise the garments sector, and that provocateurs behind labour unrest often had no actual ties to worker communities. “Much of the aid received from home and abroad for victims of the Rana Plaza tragedy was misappropriated by the previous government insiders and their beneficiaries at the time,” he alleged.

As part of the celebration of the May Day-2025, the debaters of Tejgaon College emerged victorious, defeating the debaters of Daffodil International University in the shadow parliament organised by Debate for Democracy, reports UNB.