7 months on, no budget for BCC

Seven months into the current 2018-19 fiscal, Barishal City Corporation (BCC) authorities are yet to place the annual budget.

As a result, some of the activities and services may get hampered, feared officials.

The last budget of Tk 406.45 crore for 2017-18 fiscal was placed and approved on August 28, 2017 by Ahsan Habib Kamal, the then mayor.

The fourth city corporation election was held on July 30 last year, and new mayor Serniabat Sadiq Abdullah took charge of office on October 23, 2018.

Israil Hossain, secretary to the BCC, said the post of CEO was vacant for a long time, which might have caused the delay. Election to the BCC also added to it, he said.

Seeking anonymity, a BCC official said after taking charge, the newly-elected mayor made 13 officials -- including the accounts officer -- OSD for various reasons, which may have also added to the problem.

In addition, during the end of the previous mayor's tenure, BCC employees and officials were demonstrating for job regularisation and pay hike, so the mayor was unable to prepare the budget, according to BCC sources.

The new mayor is taking time to prepare and place the budget after assessing the situation properly, they added.

Expressing concern, Dr Mizanur Rahman, member secretary of Barishal Nagorik Parishad, said the delay could cause hindrance to emergency citizen services and development works. It could also create accountability crisis.

This correspondent tried to get in touch with the mayor for his comment. The mayor's office recommended contacting the chief executive officer.

CEO Khariul Bashar said he joined the city corporation in October last year and was not sure about the reasons behind the delay. He, however, assured that the budget would be prepared and placed within a month.

Barishal municipality was upgraded to a city corporation in 2002.