Dr. Muhammad Yunus, chief adviser to the interim government, which is unconstitutional due to fraud, has gone to the US to attend the United Nations General Assembly session and some sideline meetings, including the Rohingya conference.
According to official documents, his entourage, including 19 security officials and 47 government officials, has 104 people. However, as per the tour booklet, the number is 62.
The entourage includes six leaders from three political parties: BNP, NCP and Jamaat, which the interim government identified as stakeholders.
An Emirates flight carrying him departed Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 1:40am on September 22.
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The political leaders accompanying the delegation are BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir and BNP Acting Chairman’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Humayun Kabir, Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Amir Dr. Syed Abdullah Mohammad Taher and Jamaat Member Mohammad Naqibur Rahman (joined from the US), National Citizen Party (NCP) Member Secretary Akhtar Hossain and Senior Joint Member Secretary Dr. Tasnim Zara.
Last year, the government first announced that Yunus would be accompanied by six others, but finally the entourage number rose to 57, according to the booklet. However, in official documents, the number was more than 80.
At that time, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Towhid Hossain said at a press conference before his trip to New York that the interim government had decided to cut expenses. However, there are some issues, including security, that cannot be avoided even if they want to.
During previous political governments, leaders, activists, and preferred people of the ruling party would usually go on such trips along with government officials. Apart from this, businessmen would also join the trip at their own expense. This time, the interim government has included leaders of three political parties in the delegation. However, due to the large list of accompanying persons, various quarters, including Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), have raised questions about this. There is criticism as to whether the non-partisan interim government is also following the culture of a political government in this regard.
The daily Prothom Alo says that some of the entourage members are allowed to attend the scheduled speech of the Bangladeshi head of government at the UNGA.
Foreign Ministry officials said that in the past, during the political regime, 150 to 200 people accompanied the prime minister on the occasion of the UN General Assembly session. In 2014, the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina went to New York with 180 entourage members. In 2019, she went to New York with 292 entourage members. However, during the military-backed caretaker government in 2007-08, the number of entourage members was smaller.
Two lists
It was learned from talking to some officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the entourage of top leaders is listed in two ways during foreign visits. A booklet is prepared for each visit of the top leaders. It includes the tour program, list of entourage, accommodation arrangements, transportation plans, necessary instructions regarding the destination to be visited, necessary phone numbers, etc. Basically, those who travel on the same flight with the top leader are included in the booklet as accompanying persons.
It is learned that in addition to the accompanying persons included in the booklet, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs prepares another list of officials and employees who are involved in the scheduled tour in various ways. Not everyone on this list travels on the same flight as the top leader. They join the top leader’s tour separately before or in the middle of the specified tour. Again, some of them come from other missions and join the top leader’s tour as part of their special duties. For example, Shoaib Abdullah went from Kathmandu to New York for two weeks for the visit of the Chief Advisor. This diplomat was transferred from the Permanent Mission of Bangladesh in New York to the Bangladesh Embassy in Kathmandu earlier this year.
Accompanying Persons
According to the booklet prepared for the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, the number of accompanying persons is 62. According to official documents, the number is 104. Four advisors are included in both lists – Asif Nazrul, Md. Touhid Hossain, Muhammad Fawzul Kabir Khan and Adilur Rahman Khan. Two with the rank of advisors are Lutfe Siddiqui, the special envoy of the chief advisor for international affairs, and Khalilur Rahman, the national security advisor. One with the rank of state minister is BIDA executive chairman Chowdhury Ashiq Mahmud bin Harun.
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