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All charges, no cases

STAR REPORT
The government has not yet filed any case against graft charges in 40 different issues it brought against ministers of the previous government, Awami League leaders and civil servants in the January 23 white paper on corruption.
In addition, the government has so far not changed or redressed the procedural violations identified in the white paper. In other words, while charges of corruption in many projects were made, there has not been any move to correct or modify those.
However, it did act on the allegation that the AL government had printed textbooks to 'brainwash' students with politically biased contents.
After coming to power, the government changed historical contents of 18 textbooks and wrote that Ziaur Rahman had announced the independence of the country from Kalurghat Betar Kendra on March 26, 1971.
"Our task was to find out corruption, misuse of power and misuse of national resources," said a highly placed source in the cell dealing with the white paper.
"We know that some of the allegations would not be translated into anti-corruption cases. But the rest are there for the Bureau of Anti Corruption to look into and file cases against," he said.
While releasing the first white paper, the government said it would not stop any ongoing projects that might affect companies belonging to influential foreign countries or lead to wastage of huge amount of money
spent on these.
A top policymaker told The Daily Star earlier, "We do not want to destabilise any bilateral relationship with countries which are important to Bangladesh by suspending any ongoing negotiations or projects."
It meant that the government would not stop schemes like the US company-led Bangladesh-Singapore Submarine Cable project, British company WorldTel's land telephone project, personal handy-phone project by Japanese investors, the supply of Volvo buses from Sweden, etc.
However, till date the country has not spent much for the submarine cable project, the WorldTel project or the handy-phone project.
Meanwhile, many non-political business people, accused of corruption in the white paper, have contacted The Daily Star and claimed that they have been wrongly accused and socially harmed by the white paper.
On the other hand, the Awami League leaders have denied the allegations and urged the government to allow the past corruption cases against ministers of the previous BNP government and leaders to continue.
The Bureau of Anti-Corruption (BAC) has, however, acted on its own and filed some 30 cases against Awami League ministers and leaders. The charges it has brought are not the ones pinpointed in the white paper.
In 1996, during the AL government, the BAC filed 69 cases against former BNP ministers and leaders.
On January 23, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina along with Mohammad Nasim, Amir Hossain Amu, Shah AMS Kibria, ASHK Sadique, Abdur Razzak, Professor Rafiqul Islam, Mosharraf Hossain, Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir and Maulana Nurul Islam were linked to graft and irregularities.
The same day, the political secretary to the prime minister, Harish Chowdhury, said that it
would engage international investigators to probe foreign links to the grafts.
But no international investigator has been appointed till date.
The cases of financial irregularities, abuse of power and graft in the white paper include purchase of eight Russian Mig-29, installation of over two lakh telephone lines across the country and two lakh personal handy phones in the city, construction projects of the Bangladesh-Singapore submarine cable, installation of power plants at different places, food imports from India and recruitment in the food ministry, and procurement of dredging rigs by the WDB.
The allotment of plots at Gulshan and Uttara by the Rajuk, printing and distribution of textbooks, 1996 share market scam, purchase of Volvo buses for the BRTC, procurement of diesel generators for the WASA under a supplier's credit, Bangabandhu Jamuna Bridge project and population census project have also been mentioned in the white paper.
Prepared by a cell of four consultants, the 793-page paper was published in two volumes in the first phase.
Publication of a white paper on 'corruption' during the Awami League regime was one of the major election pledges of the BNP-led four-party alliance. Also, it was a crucial part of the first 100-day agenda of the coalition government.
Some of the allegations and their status
Signing an MOU with a Chinese company on the 2.16-lakh digital telephone line project bypassing the Planning Commission and the ERD in 1997. (Project nearing completion)
Signing the submarine cable project with Sing Tel violating rules. (Still under negotiations)
Illegally issuing license to the Bangladesh Broadcasting Telephone and Technology (BBTT) and giving its to launch obsolete Personal Handy Phone System in the country. (Implementation yet to
begin)
Irregularities, corruption and misuse of power in the Ghorashal Power Plant modernisation project (under consideration for a go ahead), the 20-megawatt power project in Bhola (suspended by the Caretaker government), 210-megawatt power plant in Siddirganj (under implementation, behind schedule by several years) and Mehgnaghat power plant project (near completion).
Irregularities in importing rice from India, corruption in the domestic food procurement, and irregularities in the transportation of food and appointment of staff for the food ministry. (No follow up)
Corruption in the Madhyapara Hard Rock Project (under implementation, contract extension under consideration).
Irregularities in the allotment of plots at Gulshan-Banani, Gulshan-Baridhara, Uttara Lake and Jhilimili housing projects of the Rajuk (No follow up).
Allotting the Lalmatia playground to the government officers' association in violation of rules (A case filed against Mohammad Nasim one month before the White Paper release).
Constructing road dividers on the city streets in an unplanned way. (No follow up)
Corruption in the purchase of books for the offices under the education ministry. (No follow up)
Corruption and irregularities in the purchase of Volvo buses for BRTC. (Buses now in use)
Corruption in the construction of Minar of the Baitul Mokarram. (No follow up)
Corruption in the purchase of eight Mig-29 fighter planes from Russia. (No follow up)
Share scam in 1996. (No new case or reinvestigation\old cases pending with various courts like before)
Corruption and irregularities in the population and economic census (no follow up).