A RAJUK (Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha) messenger known here as a peon has been charged by the Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) for possessing wealth beyond his known sources of income. Of the Tk 25.3 million (2.53 crore) worth total asset, Mobarak Hossain - a member of lower subordinate staff - owns, Tk 13.8m (1.38 crore) is unaccounted for, according to the ACC. The ACC served on September 01 last two notices on him and his wife to submit wealth statements within seven working days.
It is not known if the RAJUK subordinate employee and his wife have submitted the required statements or prayed for time to do so. There is no injunction against a low-ranking subordinate to become a millionaire or a crorepati. Business in spare times or shrewd investment in stock markets in the heady days could propel him to make unimaginable amount of money. But reportedly, the man has taken recourse to foul means in order to amass wealth. He posed to be a high-up at his workplace and stole documents from files with the motive of gaining illegal monetary benefits. His is a kind of serious financial malfeasance.
What is scary about this incident is that this low-ranking employee could go about his illegal act undetected. Is this believable? Once a story made its round that the members of the lower subordinate staff had their tiffin carriers stuffed with bundles of notes of varying denominations when they left office. This ploy was resorted to with the intention of evading attention of muggers. Whether there is any basis of this story remains to be verified but at least it is a good enough indication of what really went inside the RAJUK building during a certain period. Also it is common sense that a fry like a subordinate member cannot go scot-free without collusion with his colleagues and bosses.
Rampant corruption in public offices can only explain the infamous topmost position the country held year after year in corruption index among all nations surveyed. The country has improved its position a bit but still the position is hardly enviable. When financial analysts and organisations claim that Bangladesh could raise its gross domestic product (GDP) growth by another 2.0 per cent had corruption not eaten up the gains, the reality should dawn on those who are at the helm of affairs.
A messenger or subordinate employee is certainly not the cog of the wheel, it is the top boss of any organisation who is. People down the rank come next and together the managers and executives should take the blame for setting a corruption regime in an organisation or office. Catching hold of the man at the periphery looks like an achievement. Because such an act is newsy by itself. For when a messenger becomes a crorepati, it is quite a story. When this follows the rags-to-riches pattern, it is inspiring and all the same appealing to all. But when someone gets hold of the wealth by dubious means, it draws attention for a completely different reason.
There is an oblique reference to the internal mechanism that allows such wholesale corruption so much so that even a low-grade employee can amass fabulous amount of wealth. There is no point targeting the fries like this RAJUK one or the meter reader of the Power Development Board (PDB) who had to his monstrous credit, a few tall and spacious buildings and other property worth millions of takas. Whether it is the Titas Gas Transmission and Distribution Company Ltd, the PDB, the WASA and the Bangladesh Telecommunications Ltd, the story is same when it comes to irregularities and financial abuse.
How many of the corrupt officials have been identified for their involvement in malpractices? It is high officials in key positions who have been the beneficiaries of the lion's share of the unearned money. Subordinate employees' share could not earn for Bangladesh the disgraceful corruption ranking for four consecutive years. Brought under the scanner, the majority of officers who have built palatial high-rises or migrated to countries of their choice would give ample testimony to their indulgence in corruption.
Businesspeople have had their way into politics and helped create a corruption regime. Unless the officials could be managed to do their bidding -of course in exchange for graft, such a regime could not be established. During the army-backed interim government, cars and jeeps valued at Tk 20m to 40 million were left abandoned on the Dhaka streets. Why? That is indication enough of the unlawful camaraderie between the two privileged segments of society. First, cars like those were not legally allowed to import -let alone drive on roads here. Most people were not even aware of the presence of such luxurious automobiles in Bangladesh until they were left abandoned. Recently, one such car was recovered from Mohammadpur area in the city and another was left abandoned before the tax office.
These are disquieting developments. When privilege and corruption make strange bed-fellows, human talent and industry get neglected. Society has to pay heavily for the mistaken priority. To its credit, Bangladesh has done well economically despite all such negative developments. It is time, the Augean stables were cleaned in order to reap the benefits of economic progress.
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