UNB, Dhaka
Anti-Corruption Commission Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury Sunday said that it is not easy to combat corruption without political goodwill and commitment.
The fight against corruption gets difficult unless the political will against graft does not become visible, the ACC chairman said while speaking at a roundtable on “Applying lessons from the 13th International Anti-Corruption Conference (IACC) to Bangladesh.”
The roundtable was the closing event of the five-day programme in observance of the ‘Anti-Corruption Week’ that began on March 18. The week was launched under the ‘promoting governance, accountability, transparency and integrity’ (PROGATI) program, funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
Pledging to continue the campaign against corruption, Mashhud vowed not to compromise with corruption. But he stressed that it would be right to carry out the anti-graft drive also keeping in mind the objective reality in the society.
Gen Mashhud said if the ACC’s activities in last one and half year to two years have earned people’s acceptability the effort would continue to hold on to it.
The ACC chairman said he is not in favour of influencing or interfering in legal system. Rather he is in favour of carrying out the activities normally with taking people on his side.
Last two years’ position has changed with the change of the government, he said adding that the anti-graft watchdog would have to work keeping everything around into consideration.
Mashhud said that everybody would have to work together considering corruption as a common enemy.
Seeking cooperation from the present government in fighting against corruption, the ACC chief hoped that the pre-election stance of the governing party on corruption would be the same.
The roundtable was addressed, among others, by former education minister Dr Osman Faruk, ACC commissioner Abul Hasan Manjur Mannan, former secretary Safarraj Hossain, Women Chamber of Commerce and Industries president Selima Ahmed, BRAC University pro-VC Dr Saleuddin, USAID director Todd Sorenson and Taleya Rahman of Democracy Watch.
Dr Osman Faruk said the anti-graft campaign would not be successful if it could not be kept free from political influence. He said the politicians would have to be committed in fighting corruption and that the corrupt people would have to be boycotted socially.
Courtesy of The New Nation
