Ministers should earn Tk 1 million, MPs Tk 5 lakh a month

State Minister for Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Nurul Haque Nur has expressed support for raising the salaries of ministers and members of parliament to a reasonable level in order to keep them honest and free from corruption.

Nur made the remarks while attending a discussion at the Abdus Salam Hall of the National Press Club in the capital on Friday. State Minister Nurul Haque Nur attended the event as the chief guest.

Speaking about the salary structure of ministers and MPs, Nur said ministers should receive a minimum monthly salary of Tk 1 million, while MPs should receive Tk 500,000. When they visit their constituencies, people approach them for various forms of help and assistance, and they then have to manage these matters informally.

He described the demand to upgrade the pay grades of government officials and employees after the July Mass Uprising as justified.

Nurul Haque Nur said that, as in Singapore or Malaysia, the government must first improve the benefits and facilities for public employees and then take a tough stance against corruption.

“The finance minister has spoken in Parliament about the pay scale and expressed hope that it will be implemented with the prime minister’s approval,” the state minister added.

Recalling the sacrifices of those who were killed in the July Uprising, the state minister said that the fascist and mafia groups that had turned the country into hell by carrying out a brutal massacre of students and the public are engaged in various conspiracies.