Amid ongoing investigations into alleged corruption that took place during the fallen Awami League government’s tenure, a section of high-ranking officials within the Posts and Telecommunication Division is reportedly attempting to revive the 5G Readiness Project of Bangladesh Telecommunications Company Limited (BTCL).

The Posts and Telecommunications Division sent a letter to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on 21 April, requesting an inspection of the factories of the contracted companies to facilitate the final payment for equipment acquired for the project, even as the investigation proceeds. The Mirror Asia has obtained a copy of this letter.

Sources indicate that an “unethical attempt” is underway to release funds for a contractor involved in a project that was heavily scrutinised for corruption during the last government’s term. In response to the letter, the ACC, on 18 June, stated that its investigation team had already found “primary proof of irregularities and corruption” in the project.

BTCL’s own lawyer has advised that if the allegations are proven, action must be taken against the identified individuals according to relevant laws. Project officials also expressed concerns that proceeding with procurement and spending money during an ongoing investigation might be illegal.

However, Faiz Ahmed Taiyeb, the special assistant on posts, telecommunications and information technology, sent a demi-official (DO) letter to the ACC on 22 June, urging the release of funds. His letter cited “larger interests of the country,” stressing the need to prevent “backwardness of 5G readiness,” avoid BTCL falling “behind technically,” ensure the ADP implementation rate and continue the project titled “Development of BTCL’s Optical Fibre Transmission Network by Utilising BTCL’s 5G.”

The special assistant also mentioned the aim of commissioning already installed equipment through another BTCL project. “I seek your attention and support in this regard,” reads the letter.

In his DO letter, Taiyeb further stipulated that before paying the contractor, an expert committee must examine whether the equipment is suitable for 5G and capable of providing service for a minimum of 12 years.

The project, valued at around Tk3.26 billion, has been plagued by allegations of conflict and interference between the former minister and secretary of the Posts and Telecommunications Division during the contractor appointment process.

It was revealed that the former minister had decided to cancel the tender and invite fresh ones, but the former secretary disregarded this, calling a BTCL board meeting with only one day’s notice, completing financial evaluation and issuing a work order to Chinese company Huawei on the same day.

In such a situation, if the procurement process of this project goes ahead and the money is spent during the investigation, it appears that it will not be legal.

After the July uprising, the current interim government, led by Prof Muhammad Yunus, formed an investigation committee headed by an additional secretary to investigate the unprecedented irregularities in the 5G Readiness Project. The committee submitted its report in the last week of December 2024.

The investigation also found evidence of unethical interference in the tender evaluation process of the project against the former Posts and Telecommunications minister and irregularities against several BTCL officials.

The investigation report also revealed evidence of irregularities in the tender process against two foreign companies. However, since the investigation report was submitted, the officials concerned of the Posts and Telecommunications Division have been trying to hide it and have not taken any action against those involved in corruption.

In this regard, a former senior official of BTCL said on condition of anonymity that a BUET study has revealed that if 5G is launched in the country, data usage could reach a maximum of 26 terabytes in the next decade.

“And currently, technology is evolving rapidly, and the previous technology is being phased out. For this reason, projects related to the installation of new technology and technology updates are currently being taken by considering the effectiveness of a technology for more than five years,” he said.

But in the case of BTCL’s 5G Readiness Project, 126 terabytes of capacity and 12 years of maintenance time have been assumed, which is unreasonable, according to the expert.

Recently, mobile operators have been allowed to purchase DWDM equipment. As a result, mobile operators will not receive the services that will be provided by the BTCL 5G Readiness Project. As a result, this project will be meaningless.