Bangladesh trapped in dev wastage: Adviser Fouzul
Highlighting concerns about the country’s governance and financial practices, Fouzul questioned who enables corruption in the public sector
Bangladesh remains in a trap of wastage within development projects, said the interim government's Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan today (6 December).
"There is still no resource within the government that can understand these things. We have our donor agencies who explain it to us, and we just accept it. How long can this wastage go on?" he said while addressing an event at Southeast University in Dhaka.
Highlighting concerns about the country's governance and financial practices, Fouzul questioned who enables corruption in the public sector.
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"We usually blame politicians for corruption and irregularities. But who assists them in these endeavours?" he asked.
Citing specific examples, he pointed out the mismanagement of resources in major projects.
"A power plant was built in Khulna's Rupsha for Tk8,000 crore, but there is no gas there. On the way back, I saw Tk41,000 crore spent on the Padma rail bridge. A few thousand crores were saved there in the final moments," he said.
He also criticised the revenue projections for the Padma rail bridge.
"I saw it written that the revenue should be Tk1,400 crore a year. But in six months, only Tk37 crore came in. This is how the projects are justified," he remarked.
Fouzul stressed that responsibility for such wastage lies not only with politicians but also with government officials.
"The banks that have been emptied—did the politicians open the vaults and take everything? Who are the accomplices? This is a deeper crisis," he said.
He argued that a lack of moral values is at the root of these problems.
"Our morality is very low on average. For this reason, Allama Iqbal said, when I go to the West, I see Islam but not Muslims; and when I come to the East, I see Muslims but not Islam."
The event was chaired by United International University Director Professor Farid A Sobhani.
Ministry of Public Administration Senior Secretary Professor Mokhles-ur-Rahman attended as the guest of honour, while Daffodil University Chairman Md Sabur Khan, Southeast University Board of Trustees Chairman Rezaul Karim, and Southeast University Vice-Chancellor Yousuf M Islam attended as special guests.
