The National Board of Revenue (NBR) Reform Unity Council has suspended its ongoing protest movement, consequently withdrawing the planned indefinite work abstention program that was scheduled to begin nationwide from Monday.
In a press release issued around 8pm today, the NBR Reform Unity Council announced the cancellation of their protest program while urging immediate action regarding the removal of the NBR chairman.
Earlier in the afternoon, the Finance Ministry had assured that necessary amendments to the NBR ordinance would be finalised through discussions by July 31.
However, earlier today, the NBR Reform Unity Council had declared fresh protest programs, including an indefinite work stoppage from 9am to 5pm daily across all customs and tax offices starting tomorrow. The strike was to exempt international passenger services and imports of life-saving medicines and equipment, while import-export activities would remain suspended.
Following this announcement, the Finance Ministry responded by issuing a press release as a conciliatory measure to reassure protesters.
The government had issued an ordinance on May 12 abolishing NBR and the Internal Resources Division (IRD), replacing them with two new divisions: the Revenue Policy Division and the Revenue Administration Division. NBR officials and employees have been protesting this decision through various programmes since then.
Today, a complete work abstention was observed at the NBR headquarters in Agargaon, where most customs and tax officials gathered near the main gate throughout the day, effectively halting NBR operations. NBR Chairman Abdul Rahman Khan was absent from his office for the past two days.
The strike extended beyond NBR headquarters to Dhaka Customs House, Chattogram Port, Benapole, Bhomra land ports, and other customs stations across the country yesterday. The protests under the banner of NBR Reform Unity Council have continued for several days.
The Council has four main demands: the immediate cancellation of the promulgated ordinance, prompt removal of the NBR chairman, public disclosure of the Revenue Reform Advisory Committee’s recommendations on the website, and comprehensive revenue system reforms incorporating opinions from all stakeholders regarding proposed drafts and advisory committee recommendations.