Govt to review procurement law to curb contractors linked to 'facist' regime: Fakhrul

Local Government Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said the government plans to review the Public Procurement Act (PPA) to prevent contractors who allegedly benefited during the previous "fascist" regime from continuing to secure public works contracts.

The minister made the remarks in parliament today (8 June) while responding to a notice under Rule 71 raised by BNP lawmaker Md Ashraf Uddin over what he described as irregularities in public procurement.

Ashraf alleged that many contractors who received multiple projects during the previous administration still maintained strong profiles in the electronic government procurement (e-GP) system, allowing them to outcompete newer contractors and companies.

According to the lawmaker, such contractors often secured projects indirectly before selling them through several layers, eventually leaving implementation to local operators.

He said the practice encouraged the use of low-quality materials and compromised construction standards.

"We are aware of these issues," the minister said.

"We have already discussed the matter with the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. We will consider how the law can be reviewed to ensure deserving and appropriate contractors receive these opportunities."

Deputy Speaker Kaysar Kamal also observed during the discussion that the issue was affecting many stakeholders.

Earlier, Ashraf urged the government to prioritise local contractors in projects implemented by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), arguing that contractors from outside districts often created implementation complications.

In response, Mirza Fakhrul said LGED carries out a wide range of development projects, including rural roads, bridges, culverts, educational institutions and market infrastructure, under established procurement regulations.

He said procurement is generally conducted through two methods under the Public Procurement Act and Public Procurement Rules (PPR).

Under the Limited Tendering Method (LTM), only contractors from the respective district are eligible to participate, leaving no scope for outside contractors.

However, under the Open Tendering Method (OTM), contractors from both within and outside districts may qualify if they meet the required technical and experience criteria.

"Public procurement laws and regulations are properly followed in all cases," the minister added.

Meanwhile, reserved-seat MP Nilufar Chowdhury called for the recovery of parks and playgrounds in Dhaka and other divisional and district towns, alleging that many recreational spaces had fallen under the control of drug users and criminal groups.

Speaking on another notice of urgent public importance, she said parks and playgrounds that once served children, youth and elderly citizens had increasingly become centres for drug dealing, illegal hawking and anti-social activities.

"In many cases, playgrounds have been occupied, while some parks are being commercially used in the name of children's recreation," she said.

Nilufar also alleged that many playgrounds in Dhaka now existed only on paper after being occupied by structures, clubs, markets and business establishments.

Responding to the issue, the local government minister said many open spaces and playgrounds had been occupied for partisan reasons during the tenure of the previous government.

He said the current administration had been working to recover such facilities since assuming office.

According to the minister, most parks and playgrounds under Dhaka South City Corporation had been under illegal occupation before the current government took office.

"After coming to power, the government brought these parks and playgrounds back under city corporation management and initiated various development activities," he said.

The minister added that there are currently 256 parks and playgrounds in Dhaka under the ownership of city corporations and other agencies, and efforts are ongoing to recover and gradually redevelop them for sports and recreational use.