Delegating upwards: Why do our ministries require PM’s intervention for routine affairs?

Illustration: TBS

Since taking office earlier this year, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has adopted a hands-on approach to governance, personally monitoring public services, responding to media reports and directing agencies to act when problems come to his attention. 

And indeed, his interventions have produced visible results across areas including waste management, infrastructure oversight, environmental protection, government expenditure and individual security. 

While this responsiveness has enabled the government to address several longstanding or urgent problems quickly, the range of cases reaching the prime minister provides an opportunity to examine how the institutions beneath his office are functioning.

Action only after PM's intervention

For years, waste accumulated beside a 1.8-kilometre stretch of the Dhaka–Aricha highway. 

But government agencies began clearing the area only after PM Tarique Rahman noticed the waste while travelling to Manikganj on 7 July and instructed the authorities to act.

Local officials explained that the stretch fell between the jurisdictions of Dhaka North City Corporation and Savar municipality and had no clearly designated administrative authority responsible for its maintenance.

Following the prime minister's intervention, the district administration convened a joint meeting and initiated the removal of the waste, while also announcing plans to fence off the area and plant trees to prevent further dumping.

Waste management required Prime Minister Rahman's attention on another occasion following Eid-ul-Azha. He spent several hours travelling through Dhaka to inspect the removal of waste, but found both animal waste and previous days' trash on the streets.

He gave the two city corporations 48 hours to clean the roads, clear drainage routes and take measures against dengue. Two regional executive officers of Dhaka North and South city corporations were subsequently withdrawn from their positions over negligence.

The prime minister has also had to intervene in matters of state protocol.

At the inauguration of the July Uprising Memorial Museum, organisers had not reserved a stage seat for former chief adviser Muhammad Yunus, who initially sat with the general audience. After the PM noticed the situation and instructed his staff, a seat was arranged for Yunus beside him.

The prime minister has also made decisions concerning government expenditure, canceling the traditional post-budget dinner as a cost-saving measure. The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said the decision saved approximately Tk50 lakh. PM Rahman also reduced his office's hospitality budget after referring to large expenditures under the previous administration.

PM Rahman also instructed the authorities to complete renovation, beautification and sewage-treatment projects around Dhanmondi and Gulshan lakes within their scheduled periods. He directed the relevant agencies to coordinate their work on protecting the capital's environment and water bodies.

The projects involve several organisations with different responsibilities for municipal administration, environmental protection, water management and infrastructure. The directive therefore reflected the need for coordination among agencies whose responsibilities overlap.

Similar interventions have occurred outside Dhaka.

After media reports alleged that bamboo had been used instead of reinforcing steel in construction work at Daulatdia ferry terminal, the matter reached the Prime Minister. The shipping state minister later said the prime minister called him, sought information about the allegation and instructed him to visit the site.

The case shows how the media led to PMO intervention, followed by a response from the ministry. It also suggests that the project's regular monitoring and inspection system had failed to respond visibly to the allegation.

Environmental issues have followed a similar pattern.

After media reports indicated that widening the Cox's Bazar–Teknaf Marine Drive could require the removal of approximately 3,000 trees, PM Rahman instructed the relevant minister to examine the issue and directed that the road be expanded without cutting the trees. The ministry subsequently revised the plan.

Day-to-day administrative matters are not necessarily the prime minister's responsibility. If he has to spend his time and effort on them, his capacity to focus on major policy issues may also be affected. Repeated interventions can create the perception that PM Tarique Tarique Rahman is the solution to every problem.

Asif Shahan, professor, Development Studies, Dhaka University

When an elephant was seriously injured after falling from a hill in Teknaf, the PMO said treatment was being provided following the prime minister's instruction. Forest officials, veterinarians and local administrators then became involved in the process.

The involvement of the Prime Minister increased coordination among these bodies but also showed that the response became more visible after the matter reached the highest executive level.

The Prime Minister has issued further directives on completing an accurate national farmer database by December, expanding solar power in government buildings and improving healthcare access for marginalised communities.

These policy areas fall under the mandates of ministries and specialised agencies. The directives show the PMO setting deadlines and priorities for programmes implemented through the wider administrative system.

Direct intervention has also occurred in cases involving individual citizens.

In one reported case, a government employee informed the Prime Minister that his school-going son had been kidnapped on 24 February. The prime minister contacted senior police officials, and the child was subsequently rescued within hours.

The case demonstrated the effect of direct access to the head of government, but also highlighted differences between cases that receive high-level attention and those processed through regular law-enforcement channels.

Professor Sadik Hasan of the Department of Public Administration at the University of Dhaka told TBS the pattern reflected Bangladesh's longstanding political culture rather than a new administrative development.

"Since the restoration of parliamentary democracy in 1991, political and administrative authority has remained highly concentrated around the prime minister. Constitutionally, executive power in a parliamentary system is exercised collectively by the cabinet. But in Bangladesh, ministers and officials often wait for instructions from the prime minister instead of acting independently. Some may have the necessary skills, but they are reluctant to take responsibility because they fear the consequences if something goes wrong," he said.

Hasan said the prime minister's primary responsibilities should remain at the policy and strategic levels. "The prime minister's role is to provide broad policy direction, coordinate and facilitate. These routine interventions amount to micro-management. The prime minister should focus on the macro level, while ministers and the relevant institutions should deal with matters at the micro level," he said.

The rising demand for Prime Ministerial intervention

The pattern is also visible in public appeals. Citizens, public officials and professional groups have increasingly asked PM Tarique Rahman to intervene in disputes and administrative delays that formally fall under the jurisdiction of other state institutions.

Sadik Hasan said the phenomenon reflects limited confidence in established administrative channels. "People believe that if the prime minister intervenes, the matter will be resolved. That is why they take their demands directly to the prime minister. But this is not how parliamentary democracy is supposed to function. We expected this centralised political culture to change after the July Uprising, but no significant change is visible so far."

Government employees have sought the PM's intervention over the implementation of the ninth pay scale. The issue remained active through much of 2026, with the Finance Ministry recently finalising a recommendation for an increase in base pay.

Payscales are normally processed through the pay commission and the government's financial and administrative machinery. Direct appeals to the prime minister indicate that some employees view high-level involvement as a possible means of accelerating the process.

Thousands of recommended primary-school teachers have also appealed to PM Rahman after months of delay in receiving their postings. Their appeals followed limited progress through the education administration.

Individuals reporting threats or inadequate protection from law enforcement have publicly requested intervention from the prime minister, although responsibility for personal security and criminal complaints formally lies with the police and the Home Ministry.

These cases involve separate institutional areas. Salaries fall under the government's administrative and financial system. Teacher appointments are managed by the education authorities. Employment disputes may involve labour and regulatory mechanisms. Security complaints fall under the police and the Home Ministry. Wildlife treatment is managed by the Forest Department and related agencies.

Their common feature is the use of the PMO as an additional or alternative channel after delays, disputes or perceived inadequacies within the institutions formally responsible.

Direct appeals to the head of government have a long history in Bangladesh and are not, by themselves, evidence of a complete loss of institutional trust. 

However, the number of recent appeals indicates a public expectation that intervention from the prime minister can produce a faster or more authoritative response.

This expectation can create a self-reinforcing administrative pattern. An institution delays or fails to resolve a matter. The affected party appeals to the prime minister. High-level intervention produces visible action. That outcome then increases the perceived value of bypassing or supplementing the standard administrative process in future cases.

Over time, this dynamic can place additional pressure on the Prime Minister's Office while reducing the perceived authority of intermediate institutions. It can also create unequal access to administrative remedies because cases that attract media attention or reach senior officials may receive a faster response than similar cases processed through routine channels.

This pattern has implications for the government's stated commitments to good governance and institutional reform under the July National Charter.

A functioning democracy depends on routine matters being resolved at the appropriate administrative level. Citizens should be able to seek remedies through established procedures without requiring personal access to the head of government.

The question of ministerial accountability has also surfaced in Parliament. During a discussion on the electricity and energy crisis on 7 September, Deputy Speaker Kayser Kamal criticised the way responsible ministers addressed the issue.

"The honourable prime minister addresses the issue with humility, acknowledges it and expresses regret. But from the honourable minister, we hear that the electricity wires are long, which is why the power goes out," he said.

He urged the responsible ministers and officials to explain the situation clearly to the public.

Asif Shahan, professor at the Department of Development Studies at the University of Dhaka and a political analyst, divided the prime minister's interventions into three broad categories: personal or ceremonial matters, policy-level decisions and failures in implementation.

He said interventions in policy matters were not necessarily problematic because the prime minister ultimately had to take ownership of government policy. The concern arose when routine administrative failures required his direct involvement.

"When the prime minister has to intervene because institutions cannot properly implement routine decisions, it indicates either a weakness in institutional capacity or a failure of oversight," Shahan told TBS.

He said such interventions could divert the prime minister's time and attention from broader policy responsibilities. "Day-to-day administrative matters are not necessarily the prime minister's responsibility. If he has to spend his time and effort on them, his capacity to focus on major policy issues may also be affected," he said.

Shahan also warned of a longer-term institutional risk. "Repeated interventions can create the perception that Tarique Tarique Rahman is the solution to every problem. This may once again encourage the concentration of power in one individual's hands — a danger Bangladesh has experienced before," he said.