Untold Facts

Rent Seeking Style by the Awami League Groups Since January 09 Onwards in Bangladesh

Razzmatazz of immorality
The last eight months beginning in January 09 of the Awami League rule of Bangladesh has been nightmares for all the non-Awami Leaguers who constitute not less than half of the 150 million people of Bangladesh. Personal and group annihilations of all the opponents have been going on almost uninterrupted. Killing of the opponents political believers have been a sort of sport of the Awami League groups. Unfortunately the most shameful is that the students of colleges and universities have been in the forefront for all inhuman acts and terrorisms including merciless murder of the fellow students of opponent political groups. Possibly the most shameful and tragic matter is that they have been on with those beastly acts at the tacit nod of the top leader, in particular. Illegal rent seeking including unlawful tender snatching have gone on and they have been earning millions in Taka not only in Dhaka but also almost in every locations wherever they have scopes and can lend their hands on.

Boss’s ‘warning’!
At some stage we knew that the top boss had ‘warned’ them not to indulge in those illegal and anti-social acts; but the message either went unheeded or enjoyed tacit nod to earn as much you can in the scope available. The boss had been relieved of the 13 corruption cases as against none of the opposition party not for their weaknesses being ‘politically motivated’ but for the simple fact that the top boss holds all and absolute power of the State. How could then a boss with guilt in own credit instruct others not to indulge in unethical and immoral anti-social acts? Even if one does, that cannot obviously have any moral force behind for any compliance

Three groups
The worrying thing is that the those who are helpless victims of rent seekers beginning in 2009 is that they have to pay illegal rents to three groups, not one of the same genre as they used to before 2009. This is because, now the seekers though being of the same party genre are divided into factions as they would have their own booty well ahead not after making division among the contenders.

Rent seeking in multi-party system
It is true that in multiparty open democracy rent seeking by political parties is nothing uncommon even in advanced countries. But there is a difference. The rent payers get due receipts and their contribution is subjected to open account and income tax exemption benefit for such payers. Here in Bangladesh the matter does not go that legal and known accountable way.

Fall out of unmet election pledges
The rent seeking matter has taken graver turn here for the facts that the Awami League despite their commitment in the 2008 election manifesto to provide at least one person of each family into regular wage earning employment has already evaporated in the last eight months that frustration led obviously to rent seeking in rather more vigorous way, particularly, by those aspirants of the party cadres. The other frustrating issue is that as days goes by and the fraudulent nature of the election result of December 2008 is more known to the people, the ruling groups being exposed of their dishonesty have naturally gone into hara-kiri to desperately seek rent and earn by hook or crook in the shortest possible time before they are out from the State power by one way or the other. One reliable source told me that the areas of possible sources of rent payers have been amicably divided in most cases, and where amicable settlements were not agreed upon they engage in infighting between factions for not only rent seeking but also for tender snatching, dominance in specific areas, taking lease of local markets even in rural areas, from college- university student admission quotas, hall admission seats etc. – one may think of anything for expanding influence sphere for future and timely political show down against opponents.

No declaration of assets
It is amazing to note that despite the Finance Minister Muhit’s open public assurance that for transparency assets and properties of the ministers and M.P. s etc. would be made public by February 2009, and then recommitted to do so by April or May at the latest looked like by now in mid September as a forgotten matter! Why?

Dhaka University campus scene
The Dhaka University being the premier higher education institution and located in the capital city, students of the Awami League variety or the Students League concentrates most naturally in this campus. Their leaders are no less powerful than any minister, because, they remain very close to the top boss for mutual interest and support. They have chauffer driven cars at their disposal obviously at the cost of public exchequer. Drivers’ wages, maintenance bills of vehicles, fuel cost, etc are not born by the student leaders from their own purse but by money from rent seeking or even from fuel stations bills paid by from the public exchequer.

Union Bosses
Other cadre groups as well like labor leaders, trade union bosses of various units like Doctors’ Engineers, bank employees etc. enjoy similar cash benefits at bargain price from ‘clients’. The professional union bosses earn special booties from appointments, promotions and transfers. Even dismissals from jobs of certain unwanted guys could be rewarding by discrete means.

Late President Abu Syed Chowdhury
I clearly recall here the cry in wild of the late President Justice Abu Syed Chowdhury on the 23rd December 1973 warning in public somewhat indirectly though to the party men and the bosses as well of the time, ‘NOITIKOTAHIN KONO JATI DUNIATE TIKE THAKTE PARENA’ (no immoral nation can survive as honorable nation in the world). Such was the headline in the daily Bengali ITTEFAQ the next day on the morning of 24th December. The misfortune for the saying of the universal truth dawned on him immediately that he had to resign right on that day as the President of Bangladesh, obviously by pressure of the then top boss of the Bangladesh Government. Naturally as the retired justice of the High Court and a respectable person of conscience had to say the truth in public as he had fully realized the total degradation of ethics and morality among the ruling class of the time that genre unfortunately rules Bangladesh since 2009, as well. Unfortunately we don’t have a highly ethical person and to utter the same truth with courage about erosion of morality at that position like Justice Chowdhury today. His prophesy was not incorrect but of historical truth with a difference though. The nation had crushed those thugs and immoral genres by the 15th August Revolution of 1975 and so re-earned its own survival.

Author: Dr.M.T. Hussain