Corruption haunts service sector: TIB

- Graft in passport issuance affects most

- Law enforcing agencies come second in graft survey

- Tk 8,821 crore in bribery during 2015

Service sector of Bangladesh is still being haunted by corruption, affecting the general population of the country, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) said in a report published today.

In a survey conducted on over 15,000 households countrywide, the anti-graft watchdog said it was the passport issuance graft, at 77.7 percent, that is affecting the mass most.

Second in the list came the corruption at law enforcement agencies, 74.6 percent, followed by graft at the education sector, 60.8 percent, the TIB report said.

The sectors covered in the survey included transport, land administration, judiciary, health, local government, power, agriculture, taxation, gas, insurance, banking and NGOs.

Total bribery in the service sectors in 2015 amounted to Tk 8,821 crore. The report said, this amount, Tk 1,497 crore more than recorded in 2012, was 3.7 percent of Bangladesh’s annual budget.

“The mass people are the victims of this corruption. This is concerning,” said Dr Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB).

Regarding the corruption in the law enforcement department, he said: “They are responsible for curbing graft. If they are themselves involved in the corruption, it is a very concerning issue.”