Muhith sets record placing 10 consecutive budgets

Finance Minister AMA Muhith today became the first finance minister in Bangladesh history to present 10 consecutive national budgets.

The veteran politician started placing the national budget of around Tk 464,000 crore for the 2018-19 financial year in the House around 12:53 pm.

The 84-year-old senior Awami League leader has already placed a total of 11 national budgets -- two in 1982 and 1984 under HM Ershad, and nine others consecutively from 2009 to 2017 under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government.

From today, Muhith is sharing the overall top place with former BNP Finance Minister Saifur Rahman, who also placed 12 budget proposals in parliament.

Tajuddin Ahmed placed budget in 1972-73 FY, 1973-74 and 1974-75, while Azizur Rahman in 1975-76, late president Ziaur Rahman in 1976-1977, 1977-78 and 1978-79, Dr MN Huda in 1979-80, Saifur Rahman in 1980-81, 1981-82, 1991-95 FY and in 2002-07.

Besides, M Sayeduzzaman placed budget in the House in 1984-88, Major General MA Munim in 1988-91, Dr Wahidul Haque in 1989-90 FY, and SAMS Kibria in 1996-01 FY.

Born in Sylhet in 1934, AMA Muhith joined the Pakistan Civil Service in 1956 and served in different positions in the then government of East Pakistan, the central government of Pakistan, and then Bangladesh.

An English Literature graduate from Dhaka University, Muhith later studied at Oxford and Harvard while in service during the Pakistan period.

He served as the secretary of the Ministry of Planning in January 1972 and as the secretary of the External Resources Division under the Ministry of Finance and Planning in May 1977.

He went into early retirement in 1981 and served as a consultant on economic and development matters in the Ford Foundation and at IFAD, UN, UNDP, ADB and the World Bank.

Later, he entered mainstream national politics as the finance and planning minister for the Ershad government, holding the post until December 1983.

He joined Awami League in 2001 and was appointed member of its Advisory Board in 2002.

After being elected member of parliament from Sylhet-1 in January 2009, Muhith took oath as finance minister and has been in position ever since, even holding his seat unopposed in the 10th parliamentary election in 2014.

Muhith has over two dozens of books on economy, history, Liberation War and politics to his credit.