Govt takes action against BCS officials over reform comments on social media

The government has decided to take action against over a dozen Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) officials for allegedly violating the Government Servants (Conduct) Rules by making comments on social media about public administration reform.

On 30 December, the public administration ministry temporarily dismissed an official from the administration cadre. Besides, the ministry has sent letters to the secretaries of the respective ministries, instructing them to take action in accordance with the service rules against at least a dozen other officials.

The Business Standard has obtained copies of letters instructing action against eight officers working in various offices under the ministries of Health and Family Welfare, Secondary and Higher Education, and Fisheries and Livestock.

According to sources from the public administration ministry, comments from other officials on social media are also under review. If these comments are found to violate the Social Media Guidelines (2019), action will be taken against them as well.

Along with taking action, the ministry issued a strict warning through a notice today, urging all government employees to adhere to the service rules.

"Recently, the reputation of government employees has been tarnished due to protests, strikes, and social media comments on government decisions before their official implementation," it said.

MM Rahman, coordinator of the Inter-Cadre Discrimination Elimination Council, told TBS that action will be taken according to the law if anyone violates rules.

"However, the reasons behind their comments need to be reviewed," he added.

"The July revolution happened mainly for freedom of speech. If there is no freedom of speech now, it contradicts the purpose of the revolution. But we are not in favour of lawbreakers," he added.

Discontent among cadres

On 3 October, the government formed an eight-member commission for public administration reform. On 17 December, Abdul Muyeed Chowdhury, the head of the commission, announced that promotions to deputy or joint secretary positions would require exams.

He also proposed that 50% of deputy secretary promotions should come from the administration cadre, and 50% from other cadres, with separate commissions for education and health cadres.

Currently, 75% of deputy secretary promotions are from the administration cadre, while 25% are from other cadres. 

The commission's recommendations sparked inter-cadre conflicts, with the administration cadre unhappy about the potential reduction in their promotion quota. Other cadres have criticised the recommendations and demanded merit-based promotions.

The Inter-Cadre Discrimination Elimination Council has organised protests, and on 25 December, the Bangladesh Administrative Service Association protested the reform proposal, demanding the resignation of the commission's head. 

On 22 December, administration cadre officials held a protest at the Secretariat. 

Meanwhile, the other 25 cadres started their own protests, including work stoppages and human chains, with a central rally scheduled for January 4. Both sides are active on social media, with the administration cadre calling for the establishment of the Bangladesh Administrative Service.

Officials and their comments

Mohammad Sadikur Rahman Shobuj, former zonal executive officer at Gazipur City Corporation, was temporarily dismissed on Monday after posting vulgar comments on Facebook. 

Meanwhile, the public administration ministry has issued separate letters to the relevant ministries, requesting action against eight other officials for their social media comments.

Zahidul Islam, a fisheries official, posted on Facebook that government positions above deputy secretary level were never anyone's personal property. It is wrong to consider them as such, and focusing on one job instead of shifting between multiple tasks would benefit the state more.

When asked about his post, Zahidul told TBS that he was informed about the matter on the evening of 30 December, but declined to comment further.

Mohammad Jahangir Alam, a livestock official, criticised the UNO and AC roles in committees and suggested others not to assist them.

When contacted, Jahangir denied making the comments, stating that his Facebook account had been "cloned" and he was unaware of any directives from the public administration ministry.

Anwar Milan, lecturer at Haji Abdul Aziz Khan Degree College in Netrakona, wrote on his Facebook account, "Did you wear Jamdani and give it away? Many have the magical power to immensely satisfy the board in just 3 minutes..."

Tanveer Khan, a lecturer at Zakiganj Government College in Sylhet, wrote: "If the government is the brain of the state and the administration is its heart, then bureaucrats are the private parts of the state. With this, one can either build a new generation or rape the public, but there will be no loss to their satisfaction."

AZDS M Rafiqul Jamadar, lecturer from the 38th BCS cadre, in his post said the interim government has appointed "incompetent fraudsters" who failed to bring control in the country.  

"This government will sink, and the whole country will go down with it," he wrote.

Ashim Chandra Sarkar, a lecturer from the 38th BCS (General Education) cadre, wrote, "When you have a job or money, you may look down on others, but they will always see you as a piglet…" 

In a similar vein, Shahadat Kaisar, assistant professor at Fazlul Haque College in Barishal, posted a 200-word provocative comment.

The Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Secondary and Higher Education has been instructed to take action against these five education officials. 

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has also been directed to take action against Dr Md Emadul Haque Russell, junior consultant at Sirajdikhan Upazila Health Complex in Munshiganj, for his Facebook post.

The letters warn that the comments made by these officials could negatively affect other senior, junior, and peer officials in the ministry or department, potentially causing coordination issues between cadres. 

Posting such comments on personal Facebook accounts is considered a breach of conduct and falls under misconduct as per the Government Servant (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2018.