Curse of corruption

Corruption eats into the vitals of a society; weakens the state machinery and erodes the credibility of the government

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid recently underscored the importance of building awareness among the people to control corruption. It is heartening to note that new chapters have been added to the textbooks to create awareness among students to check corruption and the teachers have also been instructed to impart moral lessons to their students so that they can build their career equipping themselves with knowledge.
Corruption is nothing new in this country; however it is now spreading its tentacles very fast. It eats into the vitals of a society; weakens the state machinery and erodes the credibility of the government. Corruption is a stumbling block to establishment of sound democratic practice and rule of law. Corruption is not only confined to government departments, it has engulfed autonomous bodies and private sectors as well.  
    Successive governments have attempted to fight corruption with no tangible success. The country’s position in terms of corruption index speaks volumes.  Corrup­-tion hinders development; it discourages individuals and entrepreneurs from investing in development projects. It increases overhead costs to projects and encourages dubious deals for bypassing bureaucratic red tape. What is worrying is that the common people suffer while the persons in high positions reap all the benefits. Digitalisation in different tiers of government can help reduce corruption. After computerisation of land-related documents corruption in the land sector in towns and cities has come down significantly, much to the relief of the people. Due to the computerization, tampering with land-related documents is not possible. However, this system is yet to reach the people at grassroots level.
   By bringing discipline, accountability and transparency at various government offices corruption can be checked remarkably.  Cooperation of the taxpayers along with the government efforts is needed for achieving this goal.  The present government has commendable achievements in different sectors. Why should corruption leave its negative impact on those? It is high time for the government to launch stringent drive against corruption.    Utterance of mere rhetoric will not do, strong political will and an effective parliament is needed to curb corruption.  The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) in the country exists like a paper tiger. It should be invested with more power and it should work more independently without fear or fervour. The country must get rid of the stigma of corruption at any cost. Political leaders, high government officials, academicians and members of the civil society should come forward to fight corruption.

Curse of corruption

Corruption eats into the vitals of a society; weakens the state machinery and erodes the credibility of the government

Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid recently underscored the importance of building awareness among the people to control corruption. It is heartening to note that new chapters have been added to the textbooks to create awareness among students to check corruption and the teachers have also been instructed to impart moral lessons to their students so that they can build their career equipping themselves with knowledge. Corruption is nothing new in this country; however it is now spreading its tentacles very fast. It eats into the vitals of a society; weakens the state machinery and erodes the credibility of the government. Corruption is a stumbling block to establishment of sound democratic practice and rule of law. Corruption is not only confined to government departments, it has engulfed autonomous bodies and private sectors as well. Successive governments have attempted to fight corruption with no tangible success. The countrys position in terms of corruption index speaks volumes. Corrup-tion hinders development; it discourages individuals and entrepreneurs from investing in development projects. It increases overhead costs to projects and encourages dubious deals for bypassing bureaucratic red tape. What is worrying is that the common people suffer while the persons in high positions reap all the benefits. Digitalisation in different tiers of government can help reduce corruption. After computerisation of land-related documents corruption in the land sector in towns and cities has come down significantly, much to the relief of the people. Due to the computerization, tampering with land-related documents is not possible. However, this system is yet to reach the people at grassroots level. By bringing discipline, accountability and transparency at various government offices corruption can be checked remarkably. Cooperation of the taxpayers along with the government efforts is needed for achieving this goal. The present government has commendable achievements in different sectors. Why should corruption leave its negative impact on those? It is high time for the government to launch stringent drive against corruption. Utterance of mere rhetoric will not do, strong political will and an effective parliament is needed to curb corruption. The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) in the country exists like a paper tiger. It should be invested with more power and it should work more independently without fear or fervour. The country must get rid of the stigma of corruption at any cost. Political leaders, high government officials, academicians and members of the civil society should come forward to fight corruption.