Noman Ibne Sabit: Street fairs are now taking place in the Bangladeshi community across the United States. Fraudsters have become vocal about these paths. As the Corona epidemic subsided, the Bangladeshi community in various states, including New York, began to engage in rampant trade. Proceeds from the Pathomela will be spent for the helpless street children in the country. With such glamorous advertisements, the fraudsters are making a lot of money and packing their own sugarcane. With this, extreme anger and bitterness is increasing among the expatriate Bangladeshis.
On Sunday, May 29, a brand new organization called Jamaica Bangladeshi American Foundation organized the first fair in New York called ‘Jamaica Bangladesh Pathomela’. The fair held in Jamaica Hills to help the helpless street children of Bangladesh has caused a lot of criticism. There is a storm of protest among the expatriate Bangladeshis in New York, including Jamaica. Various social media including Facebook has become vocal. The expatriates have complained that the organizers of the Jamaica Bangladesh Fair have resorted to massive irregularities and fraud.
It is learned that all the artists who were advertised to perform at the fair, including Kanak champa and Rathindranath Roy, did not perform but advertise in the newspapers. And many local artists have complained that they have not been given the slightest respect. The artists have been distracted on the pretext that all the money earned in the fair will be sent to the children of Bangladesh.
The biggest scandal happened with the raffle draw. It was announced at the press conference that there would be a ‘new car’ in the raffle draw at the fair. But on the day of the fair, the car did not exist. Normal raffle draw tickets were sold at the fair for $ 5.00, but no raffle draw was held in the end. Despite the announcement that the fair would be held from 12 noon to 8 pm, everything was stopped by 7 o’clock on the instructions of the police. As a result, raffle ticket buyers had to return home without rewards.
The organizers also said over the phone that none of the VIP guests would be present at the fair. There are many complaints that the stalls have been hit commercially due to lack of desired audience. The Jamaica Bangladeshi American Foundation is a brand new organization. Nasir Ali Khan Paul, a well-known face of the community, started the organization overnight on the occasion of May 29 fair. That is why he brought up the slogan of ‘Helping the street children’ of Bangladesh.
Nasir Ali Khan Paul announced the activities of the fair at a press conference held at Star Kebab Restaurant in Jamaica on May 7. He said that the budget of Jamaica Pathomela is 50 thousand dollars. 10/12 thousand people will take part in the fair. In addition to the sponsors, a grant of will be taken from the participants of the fair for the street children. At the press conference, when asked by reporters about the identity of the organizing organization and its officials, Paul Khan could not give a good answer. In fact, the organization registered in front of the fair is its own. He also has a bank account. Apart from him, Paul Khan could not name any other official of the organization in the press conference.
Most of the people in the community, especially Jamaicans, were mentioned in the advertisements of the fair, but most of them did not know anything about it. As a result, many have asked to withdraw their names from advertisements. The organizers are in trouble with all this. Hot conversations are held with many. That is why every day the names of the officials change in the advertisement. Many who are appearing on the list of patrons are surprised to see their names in advertisements. Even then, there are allegations that many people have given large sums of money after listening to Pathakalis. Patrons are also disappointed and unhappy as the fair did not turn out as expected. All in all, there was already confusion and fumes about the Jamaica Bangladesh Pathomela. The final manifestation of which occurs through irregularities on the day of the fair.
Even those who co-operated in various ways at the urging of the organizers are now angry. Many people have commented that it will not be possible to get a pass by organizing a fair in the name of street children of Bangladesh in Jamaica. Local community leaders also said a press conference would be held on the issue soon. According to them, Paul Khan has done everything in a single decision. The whole reckoning is with him. Their idea is to work for commercial purposes behind the help of street children. As a result, the pathomela organized for the street children has lost its way and is now in misery. Jamaicans want accounting and transparency of money collected in the name of street vendors.
Meanwhile, a ground-breaking organization called ‘Jamaica Bangladeshi American Foundation’ organized a press conference after the fair last Saturday (June 4). Nasir Khan Paul, the only wife of the Jamaica Bangladesh American Foundation, was not present at the press conference held at Jamaica’s Star Kebab Restaurant. This created humor among the journalists present. Several of the journalists present said that he (Nasir Khan Paul) did not want to go to the press conference, only the editors / journalists went there to bring the outstanding bill of advertisement.
At the press conference, Nasir Khan Paul, the organizer of ‘Jamaica Bangladesh Pathomela’, gave an account of the profit and loss of the committee of his new organization and Pathomela. He highlighted the financial loss in the fair with various explanations. Nasir Khan Paul failed to answer most of the questions posed to the journalists regarding cheating with helpless street children, pre-planned cheating with expatriates by announcing the first prize of ‘a new car’ in the raffle draw at the fair and extorting huge amount of money in the name of donations from patrons. Although he was accused of extorting more than $40,000.00 in the name of the fair, he admitted to collecting only $ 6000.00. It is learned that a check for $ 6,000.00 given to the stage decorators has been returned from the bank due to non-deposit.
According to a reliable source, Nasir Khan Paul has been accused of embezzling money while serving as the Election Commissioner of Bangladesh Society. He is also alleged to have been actively involved in the disintegration of the Dhaka University Alumni Association, the North Bengal Foundation, and the regional organizations in his district.
Fakrul Islam Delwar, a Jamaican businessman and community activist who entered the press conference as a guest on Saturday, entered the press conference tactfully without being a journalist. At this time, there was an extreme argument between the two. But later, at the request of journalists, he was given an opportunity to say something.
Delwar directly complained that Nasir Khan Paul alone organized the ‘Jamaica Bangladesh Pathomela’ under the name of Jamaica Bangladeshi American Foundation. Bangladeshis living in Jamaica had no involvement here. However, Delwar noted that the Jamaicans had evidence that he had used a large number of names to extort money.
Fakrul told reporters that from the time of the fair to the day of the fair, he had collected more than$40,000.00 in donations for advertisements and fairs for the sponsoring magazine, but admitted at the press conference that he had collected only $ 6,000.00 which was expatriate and Bangladeshi. Great cheating with helpless street children. Delwar mentioned that Nasir Khan Paul would soon be declared unwanted by the Bangladeshi expatriates in Jamaica for these activities.
BP/SM
