ACC recommendations: HC wants to know progress in curbing health sector corruption

The High Court today wanted to know the progress in implementation of the 25 recommendations made by the Anti-Corruption Commission to prevent corruption and irregularities in the health sector.

In response to a writ petition, the court asked the two secretaries to the health ministry and director general (DG) of directorate general of health services (DGHS) to submit a report before it in 60 days stating whether any steps have been taken and if taken, to describe the steps.

It also issued a rule asking the respondents to explain in four weeks why their inaction to implement the ACC's recommendations should not be declared illegal.

ACC's chairman, secretaries to the health ministry and DG of DGHS and other officials concerned have been made respondents to the rule, writ petitioners' lawyer Jamiul Hoque Faisal told The Daily Star.

The HC bench of Justice M Enayetur Rahim and Justice Md Mostafizur Rahman came up with the order and rule following the writ petition jointly filed by Supreme Court lawyers Ishrat Hasan and Aminur Rahman Chowdhury on September 27 seeking necessary directives on this issue.

The ACC in January last year sent a report to the health ministry identifying the sources of graft in the health sector, setting off alarm bells.