Newsletter No. 369
News-Analysis
August 30, 2006

 

IS THE “JAPAN-BANGLADESH GROUP” A FRAUD?

For many months the Shingetsu Institute has tracked the activities of the Japan-Bangladesh Group and its energetic chairman, Salim Prodhan. They have appeared in Shingetsu Newsletter Nos. 45, 168, and 234. Now, The New Nation has published an article making the remarkable charge that the whole outfit may be fraud, and Mr. Prodhan may be a confidence trickster.

Most prominently, Shingetsu Newsletter No. 234 reported about the much-heralded IT Expo to be held at the Sheraton Hotel in Dhaka in April. We learn that the event never in fact took place due to some unspecified “unavoidable problems.” Apparently, the Japan-Bangladesh Group has gained quite a track record for holding press conferences about projects, and then failing to deliver what they have promised. Is this a con game or just simply incompetence? In any case, it’s certainly a strange tale.

IS THE JAPAN-BANGLADESH GROUP DOING ILLEGAL BUSINESS?
By Syful Islam

The Japan-Bangladesh Group, a so-called business organization, is doing illegal banking business under a license from the Department of Cooperatives, it is alleged. The group is doing business forming a cooperative under the name and style of -- Japan-Bangladesh Credit Cooperative Society -- with more than ten branches in the country. Besides, the Group took several projects in the last few years involving some businessmen from Japan, but none of those got off the ground.

Activities of the group drew attention when it arranged several press conferences to organize the Japan Bangladesh IT Expo 2006, a wrestling competition with the participation of world-renowned wrestlers, the marketing of heat insulators, the marketing of payroll and attendance system software, investment in the jute, textile and bamboo sectors, and the establishment of a language-training academy.

Sources said despite the exaggerated publicity of different programs by the group, none of the projects took shape, but then financially deceived some Japanese and Bangladeshi nationals by the group chairman Salim Prodhan. They also alleged that activities of the group were damaging to our image in Japan, as a good number of Japanese businessmen were deceived by the company chief.

However, the Japan-Bangladesh Group authority denied any fraudulent activities that could tarnish the image of Bangladesh. According to the sources, the Japan-Bangladesh Credit Cooperative Society, a subsidiary of the Japan-Bangladesh Group, located at Planners Tower in Sonargaon Road, is now doing banking business in full swing without securing a license to do so. It opened several branches inside and outside Dhaka and began receiving deposits from people alluring them with high interest.

A high official of the central bank yesterday told this correspondent that the Group cannot act in any manner resembling banking. “We are not aware of the banking business of the Japan-Bangladesh Credit Cooperative Society, but we will investigate the matter immediately,” he said.

Sources said the Japan-Bangladesh Group on August 24, 2005, at a program in Dhaka announced the marketing of software named “Broadband Solution” which would swiftly work to manage the payroll and attendance systems of modern offices. Despite the passing of one year since the announcement, the Group is yet to market the product.

On September 17, 2005, the Group at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club announced the marketing of a “Heat Insulator” that would control heat inside a room during both winter and summer. Japanese nationals Yoshito Igarashi, Takayuki Fujita and Kiyoharu Ito were present among others at the press conference. But the company is yet to market the product.

On December 9, 2005, at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club, the Group informed newsmen that a wrestling competition would be held in Dhaka and Chittagong in February 2006 with participation of world-renowned wrestlers from the USA, Japan, United Kingdom, France and Australia. To make the event important to the media the group presented Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki at the press conference. But this program also did not take place for unknown reasons. The group had priced the tickets of the competition ranging from Tk 500 to Tk 20,000 each.

At another press conference at Jatiya Press Club on January 22, 2006, the group announced a three-day long Japan-Bangladesh IT Expo to be held in Hotel Sheraton. In the press conference at least eleven Japanese nationals were present where Salim Prodhan informed newsmen that 40 IT and Telecommunication companies would participate the Expo. Sources said at that time the Japan-Bangladesh Group used the name of Hotel Sheraton as venue without the approval of the hotel authority. This program also did not take place.

According to a press release of the Group on April 30, 2006, it brought five Japanese nationals to Bangladesh to invest in the jute, textile, bamboo, insurance, real estate and power sectors. The Japanese businessmen met with Minister for Jute and Textile Shahjahan Siraj and visited different mills in the country. Like the other projects of the Group, the Japanese nationals returned to their country with a bad experience and none of them came again to invest in Bangladesh.

On January 24, 2006, the group inaugurated a Language Training Academy at Planners Tower at 13/A Sonargaon Road, where world champion wrestler Antonio Inoki was present as chief guest. Sources said the language Training Academy has now turned into a manpower trafficking institution where a lot of people were cheated.

Sources said that the Group was deceiving several Japanese nationals and taking lot of money from them. But later, when the Japanese investors came to Bangladesh to see the program of the projects, they found themselves cheated by the so-called Japan-Bangladesh Group.

The Chairman of the Japan-Bangladesh Group Salim Prodhan was not available, despite repeated attempts to contact him. However, the Head of Finance Division of the Group, Abdul Quaium, denied any fraudulent act by the company.

He said that the wrestling competition could not take place due to some dispute with the wrestler Antonio Inoki. On the failure to organize the IT Expo, he said some unavoidable problems compelled them to cancel the exposition. He declared that the Group was not doing banking business except for collecting deposits authorized by a license from the Department of Cooperatives. He also said the Group was working on investment in textile sector and the marketing of heat insulators.