Dhaka, June 4: Bangladesh Aam Janata Party (AB Party) has strongly criticized the decision to increase electricity tariffs by 15–20 percent, describing it as an anti-people move that will place an additional financial burden on citizens already struggling with rising living costs.
In a joint statement issued on Thursday, AB Party Chairman Mojibur Rahman Monju and Secretary General Barrister Asaduzzaman Fuad expressed deep concern over the tariff hike, arguing that the government is shifting the cost of corruption, mismanagement, and policy failures in the power sector onto ordinary consumers.
The party leaders said that people across the country are already grappling with high inflation, unemployment, and increasing household expenses. Under such circumstances, they warned, raising electricity prices would further intensify economic hardships for families and businesses alike.
According to the statement, electricity is no longer merely a public utility but a critical component of agriculture, industry, commerce, education, and everyday life. As a result, higher electricity costs are expected to increase production expenses across various sectors, potentially driving up the prices of goods and services and adding further pressure to inflation.
The AB Party leaders alleged that years of poor planning, non-transparent agreements, wasteful spending under the guise of excess power generation capacity, and a lack of accountability have pushed the power sector into its current difficulties. They argued that the public should not be forced to bear the consequences of those failures.
The statement further noted that a welfare-oriented government should address economic challenges by reducing waste and combating corruption rather than imposing additional costs on citizens. The party warned that the latest tariff increase could disproportionately affect low- and middle-income households while creating new challenges for small and medium-sized businesses.
Calling for the immediate withdrawal of the price hike, the AB Party also demanded an independent and comprehensive audit of all power-sector contracts, expenditures, and subsidy programs. The party urged the government to disclose the sector’s actual financial condition to the public and take effective action against corruption and waste instead of placing new financial burdens on consumers.
