‘GP has to keep provision against audit claim’

The mobile telecom operator has already paid Tk1,000 crore out of the Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission’s audit claim of Tk12,580 crore

Grameenphone has to keep aside Tk12,580 crore claimed by the telecom regulator as per the international accounting rules, said Central Depository Bangladesh Ltd (CDBL) Managing Shuvro Kanti Chowdhury.

Chowdhury came up with the statement at a seminar while replying to a question raised by Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission Executive Director Forhad Ahmed as to whether Grameenphone has to make the provision as a case is going on over the audit dispute.

He said the mobile telecom operator must keep aside the money until the case is disposed of.

The seminar styled “Financial Statement Analysis and Detection of Fraud” was organised at the BSEC headquarters in the capital.

Grameenphone has already paid Tk1,000 crore out of the Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission’s audit claim of Tk12,580 crore.

Grameenphone could not be contacted for comment regarding the provision.

BSEC Chairman M Khairul Hossain, chief guest at the programme, said the companies not publishing the accurate financial statement caused the share market crash in 2010-11.

“Publishing transparent and accountable financial statements is a precondition of the development of the share market. To realise this and ensure accountability for everyone, the Financial Reporting Act was enacted, based on which the Financial Reporting Council was formed.”

He also said all the stakeholders should understand financial reports to prevent frauds in this regard. Different parties should not interpret these reports differently.

The Bangladesh Marchent Bankers Association and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bangladesh will organise two seminars on this issue on March 1 and April 6 respectively.

The Financial Reporting Council Executive Director Md Mohiuddin Ahmed said, “A company’s financial statement reflects its condition through all the information on the company. But often the investors cannot rely on or trust these reports completely.”

“The company owners and auditors work in some sort of collusion. The companies appoint the audit firms with which they have good relationship”

“The FRC is working to develop a system to control the appointment of the auditors in the publicly listed companies,” he added.

Commissioner Helal Uddin Nizami, Swapan Kumar Bala, Executive Director Md Saifur Rahman, Md Mahbubul Alam, among others, were also present at the programme.