Although the term 'governance' has become a household word, it is one of the haziest terms in the discourse of development studies or international relations. Simply put, governance means 'the act of governing'. And accountability, transparency, participation… are the basic traits of good governance, according to the World Bank definition, which is widely accepted.
It is ironic that a TIB study finds that the governance situation in Bangladesh has deteriorated further. According to the report, 'A dysfunctional parliament, an all-powerful executive, an exploited judiciary, and an increasingly politicised bureaucracy and police force have essentially eroded the check and balance that are pivotal to good governance'.
The consecutive top rank in corruption since 2001 to 2005 clearly indicates the corruption level in the country. Now, one can claim that each and every sector in the society has been corrupt. Recently this scribe visited his village and heard that some of his friends secured jobs of Income tax collectors in exchange for Tk 0.7-08 million paid in kickbacks, although they are not more than grade eight passed. And more astonishing is that the father of one of the friends tells the villagers with proud that "amarceler to betonertakai hat e dite hoi na, uprijapaitatei hoe jai" (the amount my son gets from bribes is enough to maintain his family, so he need not spend from his salary). If this is the situation, then what is the future of this country? Where are we going? This is not the end of the story. One of my friends got a job in the position of Assistant Director in one of the important government sectors. He was telling me that even though he wanted to stay honest, but he was compelled to yield to the corrupt in fear of being transferred to Bardanban or Khagrachhari. He was also telling me that the wife of his boss was every month telling his boss how much she wanted for a particular month.
The above examples attest to the negative practices in our society. There are positive practices as well which as a nation we need to nurture and think about and work for the country. The bottom line is that we have to think and work for the country and have to ensure good governance in both public and private sectors for the long term prosperity and development of Bangladesh.
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The writer is an MA in International Relations from South Asian University, New Delhi.
Email: shariful.shuvo.duir@gmail.com
No alternative to good governance for Bangladesh
Shariful Islam | Published: July 05, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2024 06:01:00
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