http://www.newagebd.com/2008/jun/19/front.html#4
New Age, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Petty corruption increases, reveals TIB survey re****t
Land admin most corrupt alongside law enforcers and local govt
Staff Correspondent
Petty corruption has increased in some service sectors across the
country after the takeover by the army-controlled interim government
on January 11, 2007, said a survey by the Transparency International
Bangladesh released on Wednesday, indicating the =91pervasiveness=92 of
corruption like that of earlier years.
The survey, covering 5,000 households in one year between July 2006
and June 2007, found that almost 97 per cent of the people had been
victims of corruption and 65 per cent had to pay bribes while dealing
with law-enforcing agencies.
Such a picture of governance has been depicted despite decrease in
bribes taken by law enforcers to 37.3 per cent in the first six months
of the interim government from almost 50 per cent in the previous six
months.
Overall, the percentage of households that were victims of
corruption in different sectors was 53.4 in local government, 52.7 in
land administration, 47.7 in the judiciary, 44.1 in healthcare, 39.2
in education, 33.2 in power and energy, 28.7 in banking, 13.5 in non-
government organisations and 6.4 per cent in tax administration.
The law enforcing agencies, the local government and the land
administration have been ranked as the three most corrupt sectors. The
rate of bribery rose from 38.2 per cent to 47.9 per cent in local
government and from 39.4 per cent to 45.1 per cent in land
administration, according to a comparison between two six-month
periods.
=91It is not statistically proven whether corruption increased or
decreased after 1/11. But what we have found is that corruption
remains as pervasive as it was earlier,=92 observed the executive
director of Transparency International Bangladesh, Iftekharuzzaman, at
a press conference held in the National Press Club for releasing the
=91National Household Survey 2007 on Corruption in Bangladesh=92.
During the first six months of the present government, the rate of
bribery increased from 12.5 per cent to 44.5 per cent in education,
from 32 per cent to 36.9 per cent in public health and from 33.3 per
cent to 35.7 per cent in non-government organisations.
Bribery declined slightly from 31.9 per cent to 28.8 per cent in
the judiciary, from 41 per cent to 38.7 per cent in the power sector,
from 55.4 per cent to 22.7 per cent in banking and from 44.9 per cent
to 34.9 per cent in tax administration =97 the sectors that were under
the spotlight of the government=92s anti-corruption drives.
=91Essentially petty corruption has increased during the tenure of
this government, but our survey re****t has not captured cor****ate or
grand corruption,=92 said Muzaffer Ahmad, the TIB trustee board=92s
chairman.
The survey, which took 3,000 rural and 2,000 urban households as
samples, did not find any difference in the extent of corruption =97
which, said a TIB press release, revealed the depth of the roots of
corruption in our society.
More than 42 per cent of the households had to pay bribes for
availing themselves of the services of any of the aforesaid sectors,
excluding the private sector, said M Wahid Alam of TIB while
presenting the re****t. The anti-corruption watchdog calculated that
the average bribe paid by each individual was Tk 861 or 3.84 per cent
of his income.
Muzaffer pointed out that the sufferers of this kind of petty
corruption were the commoners who comprise over 80 per cent of the
Bangladesh=92s population today. =91They struggle hard to earn a living
that enables them to barely subsist,=92 he added.
While taking services from the law enforcers, the households had to
pay bribe, on an average, of Tk 10,927 for avoiding arrest, about Tk
4,000 for filing first information re****t, Tk 2,605 for investigation,
Tk 1,703 for giving charge-sheet and Tk 795 for general diary,
according to the survey.
The volume of nationwide corruption in monetary terms was estimated
at Tk 5,443 crore, in which the highest share belongs to the land
administration with Tk 1,606 crore, followed by law enforcing agencies
with Tk 879 crore and the judiciary with Tk 671 crore.
The bribery in the land administration include an average amount of
Tk 5,680 for distribution of khas land, Tk 4,237 for land
registration, Tk 3,857 for land settlement and demarcation, Tk 3,303
for succession, Tk 1,857 for land sales and purchase, Tk 1,639 for
withdrawing do***ents and Tk 1,170 for paying rents.
The average amount of bribes charged by the judiciary is Tk 5,124
in the magistrate=92s courts, Tk 5,516 in the judges=92 courts, Tk 2,167
in the High Court and Tk 5,840 in special courts.
The survey re****t on bribery in local government showed that the
households had to pay on an average Tk 5,005 for approval of a housing
plan, Tk 3,120 for permission for installing a tubewell, Tk 840 for
getting card for relief materials, Tk 828 for drawing fertiliser, Tk
505 for getting a trade licence, Tk 310 for old age allowance and Tk
80 for a birth or death certificate.
|
