Very often one particular instance of a project involving the excavation and filling up of a pond is cited to show the high level of corruption in the implementation of projects in rural areas under the government's Test Relief (TR) and Food for Works programme (FFW).
In the case of proverbial pond, local level leaders and project officials gobbled up fund first showing its excavation. Next year, they prepared another project to fill up the same pond and embezzled the entire fund. In fact, there was no physical work at the project site as the pond was an imaginary one designed to eat up some amount of taxpayers' money by a group of 'innovative' local level leaders and government officials.
However, this is quite an old story. It is hard to believe that these days anyone would dare emulate such an example. But there was, at least, one instance of emulation at Dhunat Sadar Union Parishad in Bogra district.
Some corrupt officials and so-called representatives of the local government bodies have embezzled TR funds in the name of a filling up of a ditch at the premises of the Dhunat Union Parishad premises. In fact there existed no ditch and the culprits used a power tiller to plough a part of the premise to show the earth filling work.
Undeniably, TR and FFW have been two handy tools to distribute favour among the local-level ruling party workers and petty leaders and supporters by lawmakers, chairmen of Upazila Parishads and Union Parishads. Allegations have it that local level officials also get a share of the project funds and proceeds received through the sale of FFW rice or wheat.
It is assumed that nearly half of the funds made available under the TR and food under the FFW programmes is devoured by the corrupt people at the grassroots level.
The government reportedly spent more than Tk 135 billion over the last 12 years, ending on June 30 last, under both TR and FFW programmes. In that case, a sum of nearly Tk 68.0 billion was gobbled up by the corrupt local level political touts, local government leaders and upazila level government officials.
Moreover, most part of the funds actually spent on projects under both the programmes goes down the drain. The projects are generally being ill-conceived ones are short-lived and hardly benefits the general people.
However, the extent of corruption involving both TR and FFW programmes does not remain the same and there are fluctuations of the same under different regimes. Irregularities, according to a report published in a vernacular national daily, have recorded a rise in the recent years. Funds and food grains, allegedly, are being allocated in favour of ghost organisations and a half of such allocations have been misappropriated by the ruling party workers and leaders at the local levels.
The ministry concerned has received a good number of complaints involving irregularities in the use of project funds or food grains. But the ministry, allegedly, is not paying any attention to such allegations. However, the minister concerned has claimed improvement in the situation as far as the use of allocations under TR and FFW programmes is concerned.
The minister's reaction, however, is a routine one. Most ministers claim improvement in the 'situation than before' as far as all affairs under their respective ministries are concerned. Had their claims been always true, the country would not have encountered such troubles.
The communications minister's current trouble is a case in point. Some months back the minister concerned saw no problem with roads and highways and claimed an improvement in the 'situation than before'. Now he is burning midnight oil to find a solution to the dilapidated conditions of major roads and shuttling between different points of highways to get the potholes repaired on the eve of Eid-ul-fitr.
However, he is the one minister who has to make moves to correct the situation, though temporarily. But some of his cabinet colleagues do not take even that much of trouble to resolve problems that are brought to their notice from time to time.
The irregularities involving TR and FFW programmes have been receiving official indulgence for decades. These programmes are two live examples of how resources meant to benefit the poor at the grassroots are abused and misappropriated to appease the local-level clientele of the ruling class.
The allegation that substantial resources allocated in the national budget against various 'safety-net' programmes do not reach the target population is very much linked to the unsavoury stories about TR and FFW. The same class of people plays a major role in misdirecting the safety-net resources. Any move to stem the rot in TR and FFW would surely have a positive effect on the use of safety-net allocations. Â
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Revisiting the proverbial pond
Shamsul Huq Zahid | Published: July 21, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00
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