It has been proved by all accounts that the World Bank (WB) fund for Padama Bridge was withdrawn due to the influence of Dr. Mohammad Yunus. When the World Bank delegates suggested the government officials that they should compromise with Dr. Mohammad Yunus, everything was clear why the fund was withdrawn and who was the mastermind behind the conspiracy. In every civilized and democratic society, where the rule of law is established, it is maintained that ‘nobody is above the law’ regardless of how powerful and big he or she may be. But it may not be applicable in the case of Dr. Mohammad Yunus as he is a Nobel laureate. But ‘Shame on you Mr. Nobel Laureate. Yes, you are a Nobel Laureate indeed! No Nobel Laureate has ever been running after personal benefit illegally as you did. The law of the land says a banker’s age limit is 60 years. After the age of 60 years nobody can continue as the Managing Director (MD) of the Bank. And that is the law strictly followed by everybody in Bangladesh, but Dr. Mohammad Yunus unlawfully continued up to 70 years of his age as the Managing Director of the Grameen Bank. With a view to continuing as MD of the bank he himself went to the country’s highest court but the court outright rejected his plea to continue as MD unlawfully. Then he started to use power. He tried to influence Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina by the US secretary of State Hillary Clinton and it was said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was under tremendous pressure to appoint Yunus as the MD of the Grameen Bank. But it was illegal. Being a head of the government Sheikh Hasina can’t do this. She offered Yunus to be adviser of the said bank. Then Dr. Mohammad Yunus started crusade against Sheikh Hasina. It was said that he donated about $300,000 (three hundred thousand lacs dollar) to the Global initiative run by Clinton Foundation. Despite the verdict in Canadian Court against the speculative corruption allegation the World Bank has requested Bangladesh Government to compromise with Dr. Mohammad Yunus. That means Dr. Mohammad Yunus is above law, because he is a Nobel Laureate. May be, he is more than a Nobel Laureate.
The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina didn’t take that illegal request into consideration. And after that the World Bank unilaterally withdrew their fund commitment.
When the World Bank withdrew fund from Padma Bridge project, 160 million people of Bangladesh were as though hit by a thunderbolt, but some people who had been dead against the Padma Bridge were delighted. It was a real irony that when the Canadian Court declared that the documents of corruption produced in the court was found baseless, concocted and mostly speculative.
World Bank is a bank of all the people of the world. It has global obligation. When it was proved in the Canadian court that the information provided was baseless and unfounded then the World Bank should have expressed regret and when the supreme court of Bangladesh declared that Yunus’s demand to continue as MD was illegal then the World Bank should have come forward with the fund commited for the Padma Bridge without cancelling it. Another question is how the World Bank was so interested to favour a person who was giving away everything including undermining the prestige of the Nobel Prize for his personal benefit. It was said that Yunus has donated quite a very big amount of money to the Clinton Foundation. If it is true the foundation people should have asked Yunus to use that fund for the millions of Bangladeshi children who are physically challenged and facing an acute malnutrition. Not only that there are so many projects undertaken by the global organizations to help the needy masses of his own country, Bangladesh. President Bill Clinton’s global initiative would not stop without the help of Dr. Mohammad Yunus. So, if somebody describes this donation as a bribe for his personal gain then what will be their reply?
Dr. Mohammad Yunus was famous for his microcredit program under which the poor people, mostly the housewives, and the members of the poor families used to get short term loan. But the rate of interest was too high to repay by the borrowers. It was so surprising that in realizing the given loan the people of Dr. Mohammad Yunus used to take away the cattle and the goats which were the main assets for survival of the poor. The loan collectors (the people of Dr. Mohammad Yunus) were so cruel that even the tin shade under which the poor people sleep at night were snatched by them. And that’s how the rate of loan recovery was almost hundred percent. Whereas the western people, who have never been able to recover their loan more than 40 percent. And because of that Yunus was so much important to the western lender. I am sure the western money lender didn’t know what cruelty Yunus was resorting to.
Dr. Mohammad Yunus should have made a public apology for using the World Bank for his personal gain and cancellation of fund allocated for Padma Bridge. I am sure Dr. Yunus have seen the enthusiastic people and their genuine feeling and emotion of love for and the necessity of the Padma Bridge. Doesn’t Yunus belong to Bangladesh? Is not Bangladesh the mother land of Nobel laureate Yunus? How can he go against the interest of the country? What he did goes against what the people of Bangladesh stands for. Padma Bridge is a national asset and who works against the interest of the nation is regarded as a veritable traitor, against the nation.