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The disasters and local government

It is time we take a serious note of the pernicious culture of impunity that has characterised many public failings of vital utility services. It is also time to introspect and decide for us if disobedience of laws shall continue to be the reality for a large segment of our public life.

Muhammad Nurul Huda
Even a casual observer of our sociopolitical scene can, without much effort, notice a disturbing pattern in all the devastations that have overtaken the nation in the recent days. Whether it is the collapsed and tilted structures at Begunbari causing deaths and injuries of depressed folks or the scores of horrendous deaths in the tragic all-engulfing fire at Nimtoli or the multiple casualties consequent to the landslide in Cox's Bazar, the deliberate flouting of safety rules and precautions is all too apparent.
The post-disaster probes will surely venture to locate the shortfalls and deviations, some of which are all too known to cause any impact. The nation will not benefit very much by coming to know of the quantum of individual or community failings or the institutional deficits causing such disasters.
Discerning observers would perhaps agree that it is time we take a serious note of the pernicious culture of impunity that has characterised many public failings of
vital utility services. It is also time to introspect and decide for us if disobedience of laws shall continue to be the reality for a large segment of our public life.
Though unfortunate, the sad reality is that we are as careless about public property as we are careful about our own property. Many Bangladeshis that would not allow any trespass on their private estate are willing to contemplate, with total equanimity, encroachments on public property and destruction of public amenities.
In fact, in our situation, on many occasions, humanitarianism could not be distinguished from miscarriage of mercy. Politically blessed slumlords and dishonest public servants have grabbed public lands and are making large untaxed incomes out of the miseries of the homeless. Such blatantly illegal conversion of public property into illegal possessions has not attracted public attention for the needful.
We, therefore, at a national level have scant concern for public good and far too
few citizens are interested in public welfare. To make matters worse, there is an ever-growing tendency not to show obedience even to enforceable laws. Our democracy without expected discipline is turning out to be a democracy without future.
There is no denying that our cities are bursting at the seams. There is decay and deterioration all round. Efforts for up-gradation and renewal are few while urban centers lack elementary hygiene. Sanitation is conspicuously missing. Drains are choked and sewage is overflowing into the streets. Half of Dhaka metropolitan area, if not more, does not have any disposal system anyway.
Basic municipal functions like conservancy, scavenging, collection and disposal of solid waste and garbage are not attended to. The situation becomes more intriguing when we claim to be an organised society. The reality is, we cannot manage our cities. It is a pity that we cannot even collect and dispose of our garbage in a scientific and sustainable manner.
Efforts to identify the major factor for the paradox would point to the absence of effective local government on a regular basis. A mismanaged city is the direct consequence of there being no responsible local self-government. National governments come and go but local government continues to work in stable societies. In such atmosphere, the citizens are assured of the basic amenities of life and
do not have to bother about political shenanigans.
It is an interesting fact of our national life that democratically-elected governments have always been averse to the concept of local government. On the other hand, the military dictator that was afraid of an elected parliament and the urban elite loved grassroots institutions and politicised them irretrievably. As a result, we have an upside down power structure, quite unlike stable democratic societies.
Orderly social change and development of grassroots institutions have, admittedly a longer gestation period but there is no shorter route to durable socioeconomic development. There has to be a chance to learn.
Our public servants and politicians have not been able to produce alternative models of governance at the local level. Master plans have been made but not implemented. Interestingly, no one talks loudly about the concept of "city government," nor did any interest group lobby for it seriously. Our politicians see hyperurbanisation as a problem but have very little clue about its true impact. In an age of professionalism we can perform and deliver by developing expertise in different fields and for that to happen our conventional bureaucracy has to adapt accordingly.
Muhammad Nurul Huda Is a columnist for The Dally Star.