A true public servant

The King Incognito tale has been told in various myths and folklore around the world, in which a king disguises himself as a commoner or a beggar to expose corrupt nobles and to learn about the true condition of his people. Chuadanga Mayor Obaidul Rahman Chowdhury Jipu did just that in real life when he recently disguised himself as a construction worker and again as a rickshaw puller to spot instances of corruption at various construction sites. Public projects in Bangladesh are notorious for their pervasive corruption, with big chunks of the funds getting siphoned off to a select few, resulting in shoddy structures and, not to mention, a betrayal of public trust. But this mayor actually took the problem seriously and is doing something rather heroic about it. He isn’t just making false promises to stamp out corruption; instead, he is doing the hard work that comes with such a promise, and thus shining as a brilliant example of a true servant of the people – a beacon of benevolence. We hope to see more government officials with this level of commitment to the public and to the nation.