Govt forms new ACC with Justice AKM Asaduzzaman as chairman
The Cabinet Division issued a gazette notification announcing the appointments.
The government has appointed Justice AKM Asaduzzaman as chairman of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), with Dr Jahangir Alam and Dr Sazzat Hossain Bhuiyan appointed as commissioners.
The Cabinet Division issued a gazette notification yesterday (17 August) announcing the appointments under Section 6(1) of the Anti-Corruption Commission Act, 2004, by order of the president.
Under the notification, Justice AKM Asaduzzaman, a former judge of the Supreme Court, will serve as the ACC chairman.
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The chairman will receive the same salary, allowances, other benefits and status as a judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court.
The two commissioners will receive the salary, allowances, other benefits and status equivalent to judges of the High Court Division.
New commission restores full leadership
The appointment of the new commission restores full leadership to the ACC after the anti-graft agency had remained without a permanent top leadership for several months.
On 3 March, then ACC Chairman Dr Mohammad Abdul Momen and commissioners Mian Muhammad Ali Akbar Azizi and Brigadier General (retd) Hafiz Ahsan Farid resigned from their posts.
The president accepted their resignations, after which the Cabinet Division issued a gazette notification.
The government subsequently began the process of appointing a new chairman and commissioners.
On 22 June, the government formed a selection committee to shortlist and recommend candidates for appointment as ACC commissioners.
Under the ACC Act, the president appoints the commissioners based on recommendations from the selection committee. The commissioners serve full-time for a fixed term.
New leadership faces major challenges
The ACC is an independent and autonomous institution responsible for preventing corruption and investigating specific allegations of corruption and related offences.
The new commission will now be tasked with accelerating investigations into long-standing corruption allegations, advancing corruption cases and strengthening the agency's institutional capacity.
The appointments also end the uncertainty surrounding the ACC's leadership following the resignation of the previous commission.
The new leadership will face the challenge of ensuring visible progress in anti-corruption efforts while strengthening the commission's independence, impartiality and effectiveness.
