Dr. Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher, Nayeb-e-Ameer of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, has urged citizens to boycott Beximco Group, calling its Vice Chairman Salman F Rahman a “notorious robber” in a strongly-worded speech on Friday night in Cumilla.
Speaking at a reception for intern doctors organized by the National Doctors Forum (NDF), Dr. Taher said, “Have you heard the name Salman F Rahman? His company is Beximco—boycott it if you can. Salman F Rahman is a well-known robber. He is often referred to as a ‘dorbesh’; he keeps a beard while robbing the nation. He had been arrested; they shaved his beard, dressed him in a lungi, and presented him in public. Who wants a life like this!”
Dr. Taher emphasized that corruption remains the singular issue plaguing Bangladesh. “For the past 55 years, none of the leaders who ruled this country have been able to shield it from corruption,” he remarked. He also claimed that if corruption were eradicated, the country’s GDP could potentially double.
“We need a society that is free from corruption, enlightened with knowledge, guided by ethics, and driven by humanity. Now is the time to achieve this. This could be a transformative moment in history. We have reached a point that offers us an opportunity. If we don’t seize it, we will continue in the same state as before,” he warned, using a local proverb to emphasize that failing to act would result in the same old outcomes.
Dr. Taher also framed the current situation as part of Bangladesh’s ongoing struggle for freedom, saying that the country achieved its “third liberation.” He said, “We gained our first freedom in 1947, the second in 1971, and now, in 2024, we gained our third freedom.”
The event, held at a restaurant in Cumilla, was presided over by Dr. Zaheer Uddin Mohammad Babar, President of the National Doctors Forum Cumilla, and hosted by NDF Joint Secretary General Dr. Md. Jewel Rana. Intern doctors from various medical colleges in Cumilla attended the program, where they also received career guidance from Dr. Mahbubul Islam Majumder, Head of the Department of Medicine at Central Medical College.
Special guests at the event included Professor Dr. Mahmud Hossain, Secretary General of the NDF, and local Jamaat-e-Islami leaders such as Metropolitan Ameer Kazi Din Mohammad, Joint Secretary Dr. Gias Uddin, Dr. Md. Arif Chowdhury, and Organizing Secretary Dr. Kawsar Hamid.
