Rejecting the Transparency International (TI) report that ranked Bangladesh as the second most corrupt country in South Asia, Information Minister Hasan Mahmud has termed the report “faulty” and “politically motivated.”
“The method that was followed in preparing the graft index was faulty. They [TI] did not clarify which method they had followed to create the index, which means their methodology was not proper,” the information minister said while speaking to reporters at the Secretariat on Wednesday, UNB reported.
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) unveiled the TI Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2018 on Tuesday, in which Bangladesh is placed at the 149th position, among 180 countries, scoring 26 out of 100.
Bangladesh is also ranked the second most corrupt country in South Asia.
Asked if the government rejects the report, the information minister said: “Definitely. It is a politically motivated report.”
He also urged the TIB to contact the government and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) if there are specific allegations.
“The government will take action then,” he added.
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Dr Hasan Mahmud mentioned that the ACC had already sought an explanation for the report from the TIB.
“I will also ask the TIB to tell the ACC what information they based the report on.”
He said the TIB previously published another report ahead of the 11th general election to promote BNP's agenda. “There was 80% similarity between their report and BNP’s allegations on the election. It is clear that they [TIB] want to implement the agenda of a specific political party.”
The information minister said the TIB had previously alleged that there had been corruption in the Padma Bridge project, which led the World Bank to stop financing the project, but those allegations were proven wrong later.
“The World Bank filed a case with a Canadian court, which dismissed all the allegations,” he added. “We thought the TIB would seek mercy from the nation after their defeat, but they did not.”
The information minister said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had announced zero tolerance against corruption. “When Bangladesh is being praised globally and by the World Bank for curbing corruption, the TIB has published a faulty report to defame the country.”
