When \\\'gifts\\\' are questionable

The taking of motor vehicles as 'gifts' from private parties by different police stations and building of 'police boxes' at busy intersections of the city by business firms in major cities, including capital Dhaka, for on-duty police personnel have become a common sight these days.
All concerned do know the receipt of such 'favour' has no legal sanction. Yet they tend to overlook the same, knowing it full well that the practice is immoral and unethical.
A Bangla contemporary last Sunday carried a story that the car and microbus owners' association of the port city of Chittagong has recently made available two pickup motor vans to two separate police stations with a view to avoiding the 'problems' created by the police.
The leaders of the association were quoted in the newspaper in question as saying that since they are required to make available a number of vehicles to the police free of cost, they with the help of contributions made by the members of the association have provided the Kotwali and Patenga police stations with two pickup vans as 'gifts'.
They said efforts are on to provide vehicles through similar arrangement to other police stations of the port city. However, when contacted, some high police officials of the Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) reportedly denied receiving such gifts. But some police officials acknowledged the receipt of the vehicles.
Transport sector leaders alleged that the car and microbus owners operate private cars and microbuses for commercial purposes illegally. The vehicles, they claimed, given as gifts were aimed at 'managing' the police.
However, the bus owners in Dhaka and Chittagong do also provide buses to the police 'voluntarily'.  
The police make requisition of vehicles of all types under the provisions of certain law. However, they are often found doing excesses in the name of lawful requisition. In some cases, a section of police officials use the requisitioned vehicles for their personal use or use by the members of their families.  
The acute shortage of motor vehicles for the police has created the scope for abuse of the legal provision regarding vehicle requisition and taking of vehicles as 'gifts' from the private parties.
The police are seen, more often than not, taking undue advantages from the people who are always on the wrong side of the law. The latter are also found eager to appease the police with a view to continuing their illegal business operations or activities unhindered.
The construction of small structures at road crossings and on pavements of Dhaka and other major cities by the private business houses and individuals for use by the on-duty police personnel does also concern moral and ethical issues. It is the responsibility of the government to ensure resting and other facilities, if the laws and rules concerned demand so.
There is no scope on the part of any private firm or an individual to create such facilities on land or space that belongs either to the city corporation or any other government agency. Moreover, other forms of irregularities are committed during the creation of such facilities. For instance, connections are taken illegally to these temporary structures from overhead power lines.
The so-called 'police boxes' are also helping the unscrupulous section of police personnel to carry out their irregular transactions beyond the public view. Notwithstanding the fact that some of them are 'bold and brave' enough to do the same under full glare of the public, most others still prefer to do it secretly.
Not all but the majority of the private parties usually extend facilities beyond the purview of law to the police or any other identical agency with the expectation of some form of reciprocity. Such an expectation is quite natural.  
Taking of gift by public servants individually is regulated by law. No public servant can take any gift without the permission of the government. It is not known whether there is any law regulating the taking of gifts or any other benefit, pecuniary or otherwise, by the government agencies, big or small, from private parties.
Irregularities committed by individual public servants and irregularities done in the name of government entities are two different things. Aggrieved party/parties can accuse an individual of wrongdoing, but it is very difficult to do the same in the case of a state entity. Such practices do only tarnish the public image of the state organisations/ institutions concerned.  
The government should look into the issue of taking of 'gifts' from private parties by the vital national institutions and government organisations, the performance of which has a bearing on the welfare of the people and image of the government.
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