Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has raised the question over influential forces that are seemingly behind the reinstatement of the Tk50,000 car maintenance allowance for vehicles purchased with interest-free loans by entitled government officials, despite clear directives from the prime minister.
The anti-corruption watchdog believes the government has succumbed to the unjust influence of a privileged class of bureaucrats.
Drawing on media reports, in a statement issued on Sunday, TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said: “To ensure the proper use of limited government resources, the decision from the prime minister to reduce the maintenance cost of cars purchased with interest-free loans to Tk25,000 and to cancel the interest-free loan facility was a commendable precedent. The main rationale behind this stance was to prevent discrimination and reduce waste of public money.
"However, disregarding reality and driven by narrow interests, an example is being set where decisions from the highest level of the state are rendered ineffective due to the influence of beneficiaries. Under whose influence is the government being forced to retreat from this austerity policy decision, despite goodwill at the highest level? We believe it is time-sensitive for the government to identify them alongside understanding their opportunistic mindset.”
Commenting that purposive classification of so-called entitled officials was depriving and discriminatory, Dr Zaman further said: “Outside of a mere 2,400 officials, this situation was humiliating for those working in the same cadre and other services of equal status. The internal equilibrium of public administration has been jeopardized by such biased privileges. Additionally, keeping this opportunity for a select few officials undermines the regular work motivation of those who are denied it and fosters unhealthy competition among government officials for particular positions and titles. We urge the government to consider how logical it is to sustain such a discriminatory system and, based on it, receive monthly car maintenance expenses from the state treasury.”
Raising the question of whether the bureaucrats and various agencies who have been enjoying such privileges have learned any positive lessons at all from the prime minister's decision to use his personal car and bear the fuel expenses, the TIB executive director said: “Considering the cost of living, the government has already decided to unconditionally increase the salaries of government officials. Against this backdrop, the recommendation made by TIB earlier to impose the obligation of disclosure of government officials’ assets was also not accepted.
"Hence, the question remains as to how much corruption and hassle-free services will the public receive after the implementation of new salary scale. In addition, disregarding the decision of the highest level of the government in response to the dissatisfaction of a privileged class of opportunistic government officials is not a typical demand or request in the context of the country's ongoing financial crisis, both domestically and internationally. Instead, it reflects the government's alarming capitulation to bureaucratic pressures.”
