There is no justifiable excuse for the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority failing to make operational five automatic vehicle inspection centres it established in 2000.
Except for initial test runs, the automated facilities which were set up to speed the process of checking road worthiness and vehicle fitness at a cost of Tk40cr, have remained unused for over 14 years.
It shows an astonishing disregard for responsibility in spending public money, for the BRTA still to be blaming a lack of skilled operators and software glitches for the delay in using these facilities. This is particularly so given that a PPP contract was signed in 2008 to make them operational.
If contractors and suppliers have been failing in their obligations to make these usable, they need to be held to account.
More importantly, the BRTA needs to be made answerable to the public about the widespread failings inherent in the system for ensuring vehicle fitness.
Periodic high profile drives against unfit and unlicensed vehicles are not enough to deter irresponsible vehicle owners and operators, when collusion by corrupt officials helps foster a culture of poor compliance with vehicle fitness regulations.
BRTA has to become more efficient in fulfilling its duty to properly register vehicles and ensure the monitoring and provision of fitness certificates for all vehicles on our roads.
With IT systems making it easy to log and track vehicle maintenance records, there is no reason why BRTA can not overhaul its systems to ensure proper compliance. The public expects nothing less.
