Excess dependency on bureaucrats heats up parliament

Both ruling and opposition members of the parliament Monday vented anger on bureaucrats for graft allegations, and criticised the government's "burgeoning dependency on bureaucracy".    

Taking part in the budget discussion, Awami League leader Tofail Ahmed said the bureaucrats are outshining the politicians.     

Tofail said the prime minister has been dealing with the pandemic efficiently, and all the members of the House stood by the poor with government aid or on their own.  

"As the bureaucrats have been tasked with the relief management, people assume that the aid comes from the officials, not from us. But the reality is many administrative officials did not visit the area they are attached to," said the veteran politician.  

"This is a political government," he said, adding, "Over-dependence on the bureaucracy fades away the authority and achievements of the politicians."

Tofail believes the elected public representatives have a designated place in the power dynamics, and bureaucrats should not interfere.

Jatiya Party member of the parliament (MP) Kazi Firoz Rashid commented that there is no politics in the country, and bureaucrats are now more important than politicians.

He said, "The Awami League is at its peak since there is no politics. What goes on in the name of politics is mere nuisance."

Kazi Firoz Rashid said, "Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader talks about meaningless things at the evening, and BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir retaliates him just after that. Sitting at home, we politicians see the mockery on the TV. This has been going on for ten years."              

The Dhaka-6 MP said the prime minister speaks to the deputy commissioners (DCs) while the MPs just stay by the side. "If an MP wishes to talk to the premier, he or she needs to take the permission of the DC first. When the PM talks to the DCs, the MPs fall into such a miserable state," he commented.    

"The political arenas are slowly being taken over by businessmen," he said.

"Then who is running the country? The bureaucrats are. We politicians are now standing in the third line. This is our misfortune. But we are the politicians who liberated the country in 1971," added Firoz Rashid.

Another Jatiya Party MP Md Rustum Ali Faraji complained that people cannot complete any work at public offices without bribes.

"There is no ministry, division, or department where anyone can do anything without a bribe," he commented.

Shifting the blame to bureaucrats, he said, "Bureaucrats have become corrupt. The parliament had talks about Begum Para in Canada. Except for some businessmen and politicians, most of the property owners in the Begum Para are government officials," he claimed.

Gonoforum MP Mukabbir Khan said the syndicates comprising rogue bureaucrats, businessmen and politicians disrupt all the good initiatives in the government. If they cannot be controlled, the people will not get the benefits of the budget.