Task force inquiry into DCC doings

For a rather long time, allegations of corrupt dealings at DCC have been rife. Many have been the occasions when wrongdoing at the corporation came under the spotlight, especially through the media. Not that it has helped so far. In fact, the corporation has always remained under a cloud not only because of the corruption in it but also because of its clear failure to ensure good and purposeful services to citizens. Can we expect some dramatic improvement now that the Task Force is delving into DCC affairs?
As a provider of services to residents of Dhaka, the city corporation has unfortunately failed to prove capable of doing its job. A cursory survey of road conditions ought to be an illustration of its failings. Indeed, the general maintenance of roads that the DCC was expected to ensure has not been seen, to a point where a large number of city roads are today in a dilapidated state. If that is a sign of irresponsibility on the part of those who manage DCC affairs, there is another that speaks of dubious dealings in a number of areas. It has been seen that expenses have been incurred in the name of construction of new roads when in fact no roads were built. There is then the matter of other irregularities that have consistently given the city corporation a bad name. Rules relating to tenders have been violated with impunity in the last few years, purchases have raised questions about accountability and transparency and queries have arisen about the wrongdoing involved in the construction of flyovers in the capital. Last but not the least, unsavoury elements at DCC (and they all seem to form a chain from one end to the other) have regularly engaged in corruption at bus terminals and have even indulged in a commercialisation of graveyards.
One of the more potent of reasons behind the decline of the DCC has been the political influence brought into its working. While it is understandable that the mayor, ward commissioners and others are naturally politically oriented at any given time, it is the propensity of some of them to turn the corporation into an office of unbridled profit-making that is of concern. Which leads us to the view that bringing the DCC under a task force inquiry may be a good way of turning things around. However, even as we expect professionalism, indeed reforms, to come into the working of the corporation, we will hope that the routine work of the DCC will remain unaffected in the course of the task force inquiry, in the interest of the public. Overall, it is institutional corruption that must be tackled seriously. Looking into the working of the DCC and, earlier, Rajuk is a hopeful beginning.