Combating corruption as a major systemic problem

Keeping the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) truly empowered in the face of the activities of the vested interest groups who are trying to weaken it, is a pressing priority in the situation that has, for long, been persisting in Bangladesh. Corruption is one of the major hurdles to Bangladesh's achieving a higher economic growth performance with its benefits being equitably shared by its citizens. In this context, the latest move by the government to enact a law by amending certain sections in the ACC Act as well as incorporation of new articles, has raised some serious questions about enduring ACC's independence. Last year the relevant proposals to this effect were presented to the Cabinet in draft form. But it created then much concern for its proposing amendments to the ACC Act that is likely to undermine the independence and operational flexibility of the anti-graft agency. The objections to the draft amendment of the ACC Act led to government taking some time, before preparing a final bill on the matter and sending it to parliament for consideration and adoption. But this bill, as the reports in the media suggest, is not much different, in substance, from its draft version and incorporates most of the proposed amendments that were earlier objected to. These include the ACC requiring permission from the government to start a case against any civil servant, the appointment of its Secretary by the government, its new accountability system that will de facto limit its operational freedom and the suffering of penalties by its officials for starting cases against individuals and institutions who will later be found as not guilty by the courts. In this context, many distinguished participants in a seminar, organised recently by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), highlighted, once again, the need for a strong political resolve on the part of the government to address corruption and related issues. The proposals by such participants in the afore-mentioned seminar, included, among others, the recommendations for giving priority by the government to carry out research work on corruption to be able to fight it better, prompt actions by the anti-graft body on combating corruption as an on-going action in response to the developments that are taking place concerning matters that have a strong bearing on efforts to curb the growing menace of corruption etc. Yet another suggestion made by a good number of participants relates to strengthening the ACC with an advisory body drawing its members from civil society. This particular suggestion is highly relevant in the present context. In this backdrop, it is extremely important that no move should be endorsed by the authorities concerned, including those in the executive and legislative branches of the government that would be purported, either by design or by default, to emasculate the ACC. All individuals, irrespective of their positions in the political power matrix or the administrative machinery, should be made accountable and must not consider themselves to be eligible to enjoy any extra-ordinary freedom above the law and, thus, becoming unequals among the equals. As far as corruption is concerned, the law must be unsparing and those, vested with the responsibility of countering its menace, must enjoy full independent powers to subject everyone to an accountability process. The latter must, of course, do their functional job fairly and without abusing their power. They must not do the same for targeting people selectively with any ulterior motive or to serve any evil design of some powerful political masters. This is being noted here because the ACC under the last caretaker government tried in many cases to bring charges against individuals on a well-schemed pick-and-choose method at the prompting of the then powerful authorities. Combating corruption, it must be admitted by all, is a process and certainly is not an event. The amendments to the ACC Act have not yet been adopted. There is, thus, still time for the government to rethink the amendments in the light of the fair criticisms that have been made against them. It would be a mistake to think that people have no appetite for the ACC functioning with full flair.