Petty corruption ails people despite year-long drive

Petty corruption and irregularities are still ailing the general people, although the military-backed caretaker government launched an unprecedented massive drive against large-scale individual graft last year.
The crackdown on graft has been riddled with questions for being conducted largely against politicians rather than targeting corruption-suspects irrespective of professions and working arena.
Questions regarding discrimination in targeting graft suspects, impartial and successful prosecution of cases and quality investigation through maintaining procedures properly also riddled the massive hunt since its launch in February last year.
"From the anti-corruption drive people had learned that the corrupt couldn't get away anymore. But their sufferings from petty corruption have not reduced," says eminent economist Prof Muzaffer Ahmad assessing the drive in the first year of the government.
Prof Muzaffer, leader of a civil society initiative to promote good governance, adds: "It doesn't seem that public sufferings have reduced where police stations, land offices, education sector and Union Parishad offices are concerned."
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury says: "It's hard to address the issue of widespread petty corruption in our limited capacity.
"Only social awareness against corruption can be used as an effective measure to address it. We're holding countrywide anti-graft programmes to raise awareness and learn about people's perception in this regard," he adds.
The cases filed so far did not even deal with large-scale corruption. Most of the cases were filed focusing on wealth statements submitted by individuals, tax dodging, and extortion.
The cases linked to large-scale corruption include the Niko and Gatco graft cases filed against detained former premiers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina.
Moreover, many influential persons widely known as corrupt suspects still remain out of the anti-graft dragnet. Questions continue tainting the investigations as the anti-crime watchdog marked some shortcomings and was mellowed significantly due to lack of manpower and skill in carrying out the job.
Discrimination in selecting suspects resulted in a lack of public faith in the ongoing drive.
For instance, the lists of suspects published include Khaleda's sons Tarique Rahman and Arafat Rahman Koko, her brother Shamim Eskander, and nephew Shahrin Islam Tuhin.
But Khaleda's another brother Sayed Eskander and nephew Saiful Islam Duke, widely believed to have been involved in corruption, did not appear on any of the lists.
"It can't be said that all types of offenders have been treated and apprehended equally," Prof Muzaffer tells The Daily Star.
As a result of shortcomings many of the ACC efforts are now being challenged in the higher courts apparently for not maintaining procedures properly in serving notices for wealth statements and conducting investigations.
In an instance the High Court in its judgment declared illegal the ACC notice for wealth statement issued on Hasina as it was served without conducting a preliminary enquiry. Investigation into the former prime minister's wealth has come to a halt as the matter is still pending with the Supreme Court.
In many cases the anti-graft watchdog also had to accept some wealth statements even after the submission deadline expired following order from the higher court. These events have also made the ACC activities sluggish.
The drive virtually seems to be progressing smoothly, but an inadequate number of investigators find themselves in deep water coping with the huge list of suspects, eventually ending up staggering with the burden.
"It was almost impossible to collect all the pieces of evidence for a standard investigation as the task given to a single person was huge in comparison with the timeline," says an ACC investigator asking not to be identified.
Director General (Admin) Col Hanif Iqbal has however recently expressed satisfaction over their activities done in the last year saying: "We have carried out our duty as much as it was possible within our limited capacity."
The commission could not even look into 70,000 allegations submitted by individuals since its inception due to excess workload. It initiated scrutinising the allegations in December and has so far completed checking several thousand.
Besides, owing to the work pressure ACC investigators can't concentrate on the cases filed during the tenure of now-defunct Bureau of Anti-Corruption.
Though the commission was reformed to make it 'free' and 'independent', the army-backed caretaker government itself formed another body styled National Coordination Committee (NCC) on Combating Corruption and Crime comprising civil and military officials.
The NCC and its many taskforces prepared lists of graft suspects and conducted primary investigation against them, whereas the ACC published lists in phases and issued notices on them to submit wealth statements.
"We were asked to carry out an investigation against a suspect in line with a report prepared by the taskforces. Sometimes the report helped us. But there were times it hindered our activities, as we had directions to give it more priority," says an investigator wishing to remain unnamed.
Even the taskforce members from the defences, who played a key role in probing corruption allegations, also reported difficulties in ensuring quality investigation and mentioned that lack of skill or expertise hampered the process.
At one stage, the leading top officials themselves felt that the anti-corruption drive was not progressing according to their level of expectation due to lack of experience and poor coordination as well as understanding among those involved.
Lt Gen Masud Uddin Chowdhury, chief coordinator of the NCC, told the press: "Many of us involved in the process of enquiry and investigation lack experience.
"The task force members [under the coordination committee] from the army, navy and air force also don't have that kind of experience in investigation. This has specially affected the pace of progress of investigation.
"We're dealing with high profile people, many of whom were involved in corporate corruption. To tell you the truth, none of our departments has any experience of [probing] corporate corruption," the general pointed out.
"We didn't have field-level experience to work with such issues. As a result, the rate of executing suspects reduced. But we have accepted the matter as we have some limitations," says Hasan Mashhud.
"Measures have been taken and the number of courts increased to have more cases resolved," he observes.
Even after all these, the positive and effective impression the anti-graft drive has presented to the people is that none regardless of social stature and position is above the law; it is not possible for anyone to escape the hand of the law.
Prof Muzaffer, also chairman of the board of trustees of Transparency International, Bangladesh, says: "Corruption can't be eradicated in a single day. The work has just begun. Some of those who once believed themselves untouchable are already apprehended."
"At present the drive mainly aims at politicians, who can't conduct a corrupt act without having assistance from the bureaucrats and businesspersons. Advancement of the drive towards that end is slow," he observes.
"None is above the law. But the government is to soften its position when a section of people jointly push it to a difficult situation. As an instance the businessmen by hiking essentials' prices through a syndicate have pushed the government in such a situation. The problem must be addressed," Prof Muzaffer tells The Daily Star.
The joint forces and other law enforcement agencies had arrested a good number of businessmen after the state of emergency was declared. But the government had to take a U-turn seeing skyrocketing prices of essentials.
After prices of essentials rose, former information and law adviser Mainul Hosein told newspersons the government would help the arrested businessmen get bail from the court.
And two businessmen were released on bail at the end of last year.
"About its success, it can easily be said that the Anti-Corruption Commission has succeeded in making corruption a punishable crime. For its failure, it has not been able to prosecute many corruption cases successfully and sometimes impartially," says Dr Shahdeen Malik, a legal expert.
"The reason behind this inability is mostly due to lack of sufficient experience and expertise of the Anti-Corruption Commission in dealing with corruption cases.
"Nevertheless, a very good beginning has been made and it seems the government no longer wants ourselves to be known as a corrupt nation."
According to ACC statistics, 239 out of 256 graft suspects served with notices to submit wealth statements have so far done accordingly.
Around 141 cases were also filed against former ministers, state ministers and lawmakers including BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina.
As many as 69 charge sheets were submitted after investigation, 53 cases are pending in the courts, and verdict was given in 18 cases.
Besides ACC, National Board of Revenue (NBR) also filed cases for tax dodging, while some individuals filed extortion cases against some high-profile political personalities including Sheikh Hasina.
Allegations are rife that the government had a hand behind filing these extortion cases.
The government also set up nine special courts on the national parliament complex to deal with the graft cases filed by the ACC and the NBR. Some of the cases were brought under the Emergency Power Rules (EPR).
Bringing the cases under EPR was challenged in the higher courts as the time of the incidents taking place was much earlier than proclamation of the state of emergency. This has added to the slowness of the legal proceedings.
After the state of emergency was declared on January 11, Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed was sworn in as the chief of caretaker government on January 12.
The government then announced that its key goal was to hold a free and fair election and it will have to undertake measures to ensure a level playing field to that end.
The government identified corruption as the biggest enemy to holding such a free and fair election and as baneful to the nation.
With this note, the government started its highly spirited anti-corruption drive amid widespread support, even from the major political parties, although this drive primarily busted a number of top political leaders.
To make this drive effective, the government reconstituted the ACC in February and appointed competent personnel -- Lt Gen (retd) Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury, Habibur Rahman and Abul Hassan Manzoor Mannan -- as its chairman and commissioners.
Against this backdrop, the commission initiated a drive against institutional corruption and corruption that takes place regularly. The move has made it more difficult for the about 700-strong staff, of whom about 100 investigators are working elsewhere in the country. It has given rise to the suspicion about how much the commission would be able to address the issue.
Experts observe that before expanding its drives the ACC should determine its priorities so that the people can be benefited from the effort.