Hasina’s whim: Tk1,261cr spent on Mujib Year celebration
Interim government cancelled budget allocation for Mujib Borsho celebration from 2024-25 fiscal year
Highlights:
- Mujib Year started on 17 March 2020, and continued until 31 March 2022, during the pandemic
- Public funds allocated for Mujib Year were spent based on unilateral decisions, TIB's Iftekharuzzaman says
- State resources were misused without accountability, serving the interests of the Sheikh family
- Those responsible for this must be held accountable
For former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, seemed to take precedence over everything else – even the country and its people.
She inaugurated Mujib Year on 17 March 2020, to mark his birth centenary, amid the global outbreak of Covid-19, which had also begun affecting Bangladesh. The celebration reportedly delayed the country's pandemic preparedness.
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Her government even allegedly withheld news of the first Covid-19 cases in Bangladesh to proceed with the 7 March celebration commemorating Mujib's 1971 speech. Children continued attending school despite the virus spreading, with the first case only announced on 8 March.
Interestingly, when Sheikh Mujib was born on 17 March 1920, in the Bengal Presidency (now Tungipara village in Gopalganj district, Bangladesh), the world was grappling with another pandemic – the Spanish flu.
Hasina's government spent Tk1,261 crore in public funds on Mujib Year celebrations over the past six years, according to data presented by relevant ministries and government entities during an Advisory Council meeting of the interim government at the secretariat today (20 November).
The Council decided to suspend budget allocation for "Mujib Year" celebration, starting from the current fiscal year (FY25), according to a press release issued by the Chief Adviser's Office.
"Sheikh Mujib's contributions to the country have been severely undermined and tarnished by none other than his own party, the Awami League, and his daughter's authoritarian government," Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), told TBS over the phone last night.
"The funds allocated for Mujib Year were spent based on unilateral decisions and party-driven actions, bypassing the proper procurement process. State resources were misused without accountability, serving the interests of the family and the party, resulting in the wastage of public funds," he said.
"Those directly or indirectly responsible for this, including politicians, bureaucrats, and contractors involved in the Mujib Year programmes, must be held accountable. Exemplary punishment should be ensured to prevent future misuse of state resources for personal or party purposes," Iftekharuzzaman added.
The grandeur and extravagance of the Mujib Year celebrations appear to have been driven primarily by Hasina and a select group of her allies, with a significant portion of the general public not sharing the same enthusiasm.
Following Hasina's ousting on 5 August this year, Sheikh Mujib's death anniversary was marked in a more subdued manner, reminiscent of the years after the fall of his one-party state regime in 1975.
What went wrong? What legacy did Hasina leave behind during her consecutive 15-year rule?
Extravagance of the Mujib Year
Sheikh Hasina declared the fiscal year 2020-21 as the Mujib Year during a party meeting at the Awami League's central office on 6 July 2018, according to information published on the websites of various ministries, departments, offices, and organisations.
To mark the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Awami League government formed two committees: the National Committee and the National Implementation Committee, on 14 February 2019. Sheikh Hasina chaired the 102-member National Committee, which included politicians, bureaucrats, army personnel, teachers, artists, and journalists.
The official countdown and unveiling of the Mujib Year logo began on 10 January 2020, on Sheikh Mujib's Homecoming Day. The logo was designed by Sabyasachi Hazra. The background music for Mujib Year featured the iconic line, "Tumi Banglar Dhrubo Tara, Tumi Hridoyer Batighar, Akashe Batashe Bojrokantha, Tomar Kanthashwar."
Mujib Year officially commenced on 17 March 2020, and continued until 31 March 2022, coinciding with the peak of the pandemic. Initially planned for one year, the celebration period was later extended by a year.
Various programmes were organised across government offices under the guidance of the National Committee, while individual ministries and departments also held their own celebrations.
Due to the pandemic, many Mujib Year events were conducted digitally, including a video and photo documentary on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Memorial books, anthologies, and souvenirs were also released in his honour.
The inaugural event, titled "Muktir Mahanayak," and a 10-day celebration called "Mujib Chirantan" were held. Other initiatives included the launch of a special Mujib Year website, the release of commemorative postage stamps, a 100-day long quiz competition, and a special mobile package called "Shatabarsho" by the state-owned Teletalk, offered free of charge.
A special internet package was made available at a nominal price, and the communication app Alaap was introduced. Various public and private organisations set up Mujib Corners at their offices.
The Mujib Year celebrations officially concluded on 31 March 2022.
