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Inefficient judiciary holds back good governance

Says Moudud, stresses permanent posts of govt attorneys as remedy

Staff Correspondent
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Barrister Moudud Ahmed yesterday said inefficiency of the judiciary is a major obstacle to establishing good governance in the country.
Judiciary, the key institution that keeps balance among the various wings of a state, unfortunately is not that much efficient yet, he told the inaugural session of the second day of a consultative meeting on introduction of a proposed government attorney service.
The law ministry in association with Canadian International Development Agency (Cida) organised the convention at the old High Court auditorium in the city.
Speaking as the chief guest of the session, the law minister said
two strong reasons are behind the inadequacy of the judicial system. One is the temporary nature of appointment of government lawyers and the other is the weak investigation system of the police.
"Government lawyers at the district level are routinely changed in line with the changes of government, a practice that also offers them a wide scope for corruption and politicisation," Moudud observed, adding the short-term tenure also prevents acquiring skills, efficiency and experience.
There also is no system for making the government lawyers accountable.
To rectify the malady, he said, appointment of government attorneys should be made permanent and their remuneration including allowances and other facilities
should be good enough for a comfortable living. Otherwise, they would be forced to carry on private practices, which would hamper the prosecution and conviction process, he argued.
"To stay neutral, government prosecutors must not have any link with the administration or political parties. But, in many cases, the prevailing reality is exactly the opposite," he added.
Moudud said, compared to the above 90 percent rate of conviction in many countries, in Bangladesh it is below 15 percent. "We want to raise it to at least 85 percent through introducing the government attorney service."
He lamented the fact that no legal expert was found who could take part in water sharing and World Trade Organisation negotiations. He cited the instance of an international consultation on water and said, "I felt ashamed that our experts had no or very little knowledge on the issue. For that reason, we could not make an effective participation, too."
To overcome such shortcomings, he said, "Lawyers will be given special training."
Moudud said two more such consultative meetings would be held with government officials and lawyers and a draft proposal on the government attorney service would be prepared based on their recommendations.
On separation of investigation and law enforcement duties of the police, the law minister said the government has already formed 30 independent investigation units and 270 more will follow. "The police cannot make neutral investigation while carrying out routine work and maintaining protocols for ministers and other high-ups," he remarked.
Canadian High Commissioner David Sproule, solicitor of the ministry SM Harun Osmani and Cida Legal Reforms Project Director Lionel A Levert also spoke at the session chaired by Law Secretary Alauddin Sarker.