Political parties and financial transparency
Income sources
of our political parties should be made public for not only the sake of
ensuring transparency
on how and where party funds are raised from,
but also to hold political parties accountable for their financial statements
The curiosity over the incomes of our registered political parties is actually an old one but addressed rather late. Income sources of our political parties should be made public for not only the sake of ensuring the transparency on how and where party funds are raised from, but also to hold political parties accountable for their financial statements. To cut a long story short, politics is practiced ideally in the interest of the people and if the parties are run by illegal means of income, their leaders cannot guarantee financial integrity, if elected. In Bangladesh the matter of ensuring transparency should have come a lot earlier when democracy was restored back in the early 90s.
Moreover, we believe since a relatively large percent of the income of political parties cannot be traced to the original donor, full details of all donors should be made available for public scrutiny. Better late than never, now the issue has surfaced in the face of pressure created by political analysts, experts and think-tanks. Political parties in many democratic countries reveal their income sources to ensure visible earnings. Such disclosures not only improve the image of parties but also hugely help in building national and international credibility.
As per common practice, it is up to the Election Commission (EC) to examine the authenticity of financial statements submitted by political parties as well as to safeguard their credibility. Furthermore, with reference to a recent court verdict the EC is bound to disclose earning documents for both private and public scrutiny. We expect them to carry out their duties accordingly. Our EC is
reported to have chalked out and clearly defined the elements constituting sources of income. Now that the clear authority and guideline is there, the ball is clearly in ECs court. It should move in line with it and therefore, disclose and declare which earnings are clear and which are
questionable.
Also it should practice its powers lawfully. Coupled with the Information Commission, the EC in fact now has a golden opportunity to change its longstanding less-than-sterling public perception by playing a vital role in cleaning up the funds running Bangladesh politics. Finally, a corruption-free society cannot be imagined until the corruption at the political level is not stopped. Seeds of corruption start to germinate when donations are collected in unhealthy and opaque manner for the purpose of fighting elections. We must all realize this truth.
