Sonali Bank chairman resigns
Ziaul Hasan Siddiqui, the chairman of state-owned Sonali Bank PLC, has resigned from his position.
He submitted his resignation letter to the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance on Monday. The resignation letter was accepted yesterday, as confirmed in a letter signed by Deputy Secretary Afsana Bilkis.
The resignation followed a protest by bank employees who gathered at the headquarters on Monday, demanding promotions and permanent appointments for temporary staff.
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They reportedly confined the chairman to his office for several hours.
The chairman had initially requested more time, stating that the matter would be discussed at a board meeting on Tuesday. However, the employees, dissatisfied with his verbal assurance, pressed for an immediate decision.
Later in the evening, with the assistance of the military, the chairman was escorted out of the bank.
An official of the bank, requesting anonymity, said that the bank's management had been involved in corrupt practices, favouring junior employees over seniors in promotions, and implementing discriminatory promotion policies.
The official further claimed that the viva voce and computer tests for promotions, which are not standard in other banks, is a manipulative scoring system used as a tool to favour specific candidates.
"With the government change and nationwide reforms, the affected employees are now pressing for their demands," the official said.
