Civic services halted as Ctg city councillors go into hiding

Illustration: TBS

Saiful Khaled, a resident of Dampara Mosque Street in Chattogram city, has visited the councillor's office twice in the past weeks to obtain his father's death certificate. 

However, the councillor of Chattogram City Corporation's (CCC) Bagmoniram Ward 15 has been missing since 19 August.

Saiful told The Business Standard, "My father passed away on 3 July. Due to grief and the subsequent unrest, we postponed applying for the death certificate."

"When I went to the councillor's office on 28 August, I was told to come the following week as the councillor was unavailable. I came today (2 September), but he is still absent, and I couldn't even submit the application online," he added.

After the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August, the majority of Chittagong City Corporation's 55 ward councilors (41 general and 14 reserved seat women councillors) and the mayor have gone into hiding, with many of them now facing murder charges. 

According to sources at the ward councillors' offices, over 35 councillors remain absent, with only 9 attending office regularly, leading to major disruptions in civic services.

CCC Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sheikh Mohammad Tauhidul Islam told TBS, "Most of the councillors are not performing office duties, thus creating a crisis. The list of absent councillors has been sent to the ministry, and necessary actions will be taken based on their decision."

Ward office officials told TBS that after the AL government's ouster on 5 August, councillors continued working remotely, providing necessary signatures from undisclosed locations. 

However, once they were implicated in cases related to the student movement's casualties, panic grew, and most councillors went into hiding.

During a visit to the Bagmoniram Ward 15 councillor's office, TBS found that both the councillor and the office secretary have been absent since 20 August. 

While the online application process is still running at Lalkhan Bazar Ward 14, citizens seeking services at Jamalkhan Ward 21 are being turned away.

Shamim Mahmud, an assistant handling birth and death registrations at Bagmoniram Ward 15, told TBS, "Until 18 August, the councillor was signing documents, which were delivered via the councillor's driver. But now, all operations have stopped, with around 20 applications pending."

Parvez Kabir, secretary of Ward 21, said, "The councillor hasn't worked since 5 August. About 150 applications for various services, including birth and death certificates, are pending."

Since 18 August, the CCC has gathered field data to identify absentee ward councillors. A report on these findings was submitted to the local government ministry on 29 August.

What the CCC report reveals

In its report submitted to the local government ministry on 29 August, the CCC said that of the 55 councillors — 41 general and 14 reserved — 39 are absent, 7 are working irregularly, and only 9 are working regularly.

The report noted that most absentee councillors are hiding over security concerns and case-related issues, resulting in city residents being deprived of essential services.

The CCC also assessed the damage to various ward offices during the unrest, reporting a total loss of Tk4,31,63,200 caused by attacks, vandalism, and arson at 27 general ward offices and 5 reserved women councillors offices.

CCC's civic services

The CCC provides 17 types of civic services through its ward councillor offices. These include issuing nationality, birth, and death registration certificates, along with attested certificates for citizenship, character, inheritance, income, marital status, family membership, and allowances for old age and disability.

Key tasks, such as issuing new birth and death certificates and making corrections, are also handled by councillors' offices. 

Additionally, the councillors oversee activities like sanitation, addressing civil issues, and mosquito control, all of which have been disrupted since 5 August.