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Politicisation hindering public admin

Speakers tell CGS event
STAFF CORRESPONDENT
Politicisation remains the biggest challenge to Bangladesh’s public administration, with both politicians and bureaucrats contributing to its entrenchment, speakers said at a discussion yesterday.
They criticised the isolation of public administration from the people and called for sweeping reforms to ensure accountability and merit-based appointments.
The public administration system is heavily influenced by a “broker culture”, undermining its effectiveness, speakers said at the discussion, organised by the Centre for Governance Studies at the CIRDAP auditorium in Dhaka.
Hossain Zillur Rahman, former advisor to a caretaker government, said, “Our public administration suffers from significant deficiencies and is trapped in a broker system.”
Criticising the state of local governance, he added, “Political parties and bureaucrats have reduced local governments to low-class servants.”
He said without granting autonomy to institutions, economic progress would remain stagnant.
“Bangladesh is experiencing instability and uncertainty, but also an opportunity to bring about change,” said Zillur, also executive director of CGS.
Badiul Alam Majumdar, head of the Election Reform Commission, linked the current state of public administration to its colonial legacy.
“The administration was a tool of governance and exploitation for the British, and we still see its legacy. It was meant to serve the people but has failed to achieve that goal,” he said.
Dr Muhammad Abdul Mazid, former Secretary and Chairman of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), urged political parties to include reform commitments in their election manifestos.
“National institutions must not be politicised. The persistence of a brokerage culture undermines accountability,” he said.
Former Secretary AKM Abdul Awal Majumdar traced the roots of administrative decay to the post-independence period.
Former FBCCI President Mir Nasir Hossain highlighted the lack of inter-ministerial coordination and emphasised the importance of holding corrupt individuals accountable.
Advocate Subrata Chowdhury, general secretary of Gono Forum, cautioned against wasting time under the guise of reform efforts.
Student representative Tahmid Al Mudassir criticised the servility and pettiness of officials in public administration, particularly within the secretariat.
Maj Gen (retd) ALM Fazlur Rahman, former director general of Bangladesh Rifles, proposed forming an all-party government for five years to implement reforms before the next national elections.
The discussion also included remarks from Ibrahim Khan, former Secretary and general secretary of the Officers’ Club, and Mahmudul Islam Chowdhury, former mayor of Chattogram City Corporation and a former lawmaker. They called for institutional reforms.
Other speakers included Dr Jamal Uddin Ahmed, former general secretary of the Bangladesh Economic Association, Mujibur Rahman Manju, member secretary of the Amar Bangladesh Party, former secretary Sultana Afroz, and major general (retd) AMSA Amin, an organiser of Ethical Society Bangladesh. Monira Khan, chair of CGS, and Abdullah Hil Rakib, former BGMEA vice president, stressed the importance of ethical governance.
Dhaka University’s Public Administration expert Dr Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah, NDM Chairman Bobby Hajjaj, and senior assistant editor of Daily Jugantor Mahbub Kamal also shared their perspectives.