The immediate past Sheikh Hasina government doomed the country by turning it into a paradise for plunderers. They undertook various development projects to facilitate the party-backed high-ups for embezzling public money in many ways.
It (erstwhile government) completed 95 projects for expansion and modernisation of rail lines to bring the entire country under rail connectivity in the last 15 years. The construction work of those projects were completed at a cost of Taka one lakh five thousand crore.
During her (Sheikh Hasina) regime, high-ups of the railway ministry and railway department allegedly took out at least Taka 30 percent out of the total cost of 95 projects. All the projects saw time extensions ranging from one year to five years, according to media reports.
Their only goal was to plunder money and destroy everything in the country. The then government confused people through the myth of development. Every year the budget had been crafted by the them to indulge in plundering.
Apart from railway projects, it is alleged that the erstwhile government led the country to the brink of a dark abyss, through ‘mega’ corruption in mega projects in different sectors. In the name of mega projects, the immediate past government cooperated (with the looters) in plundering the country’s financial sector.
Because the masterminds of those involved in the looting are all the agents of the government, Bangladesh has been made bankrupt. On the other hand, an indisciplined situation is now prevailing in the all ongoing development projects. During the regime of Sheikh Hasina-led Awami league government, the timeframe of all projects was extended several times. Expenses of these projects increased unnecessarily. Everyone knows that Bangladesh has many projects which spent the highest amount of money in the world per unit. The immediate past Sheikh Hasina government had taken numerous projects.
High-ups of the railway ministry and railway department
allegedly took out at least Taka 30 percent out of the total
cost of 95 projects. All the projects saw time extensions
ranging from one year to five years, according to media reports
Making the economy stable is a big matter right now for the interim government and it is related with the planning commission. The interim government will also have to reduce the inflation and take measures to reduce the public expenditure to avert high budget deficit.
The projects which do not have priority and have doubt about the outcomes of these projects, the interim government will have to evaluate those projects very quickly. There are extensive irregularities in design, expenditure and in timeframe in the mega projects. Some of these irregularities are for lack of skills.
Everyone knows that many infrastructural projects which could be done at lower price, but due to lack of proper evaluation, implementation and faulty design those had been redesigned. Side by side, their timeframe has been extended leading to waste of resources.
The timely execution of a number projects always looks uncertain due to the lengthy bureaucratic tangle in getting the necessary support. As the bureaucratic red tape holds up most projects, it is very difficult to implement them on time. Bureaucratic red tape has remained a major constraint for implementation of the projects.
The public servants of ministries and departments either took “excessive time” to give a go-ahead for the process or remain reluctant. Many projects that have got stuck in bureaucratic tangle usually need more funds and more time that breed corruption.
There was a time when there was no social acceptance of bribe- takers, usurers and the corrupt. But with the passage of time, that value has gradually eroded. Now there is a dominance of the corrupt everywhere in towns, cities and villages.
No one cares about the source of the money anymore. Therefore, we think Chief Adviser Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus-led interim government will launch crackdown on corrupt officials who looted public exchequer and punish them.
