Contractual appointments of all officials made during AL govt to be cancelled

All contractual appointments of officials made during the tenure of the recently ousted Awami League government are set to be cancelled. 

Additionally, there is a growing demand to remove other officials who benefitted during the last government's tenure from key positions.

Shamsus Sadat Selim, head of the APD Wing and Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Public Administration, confirmed this development to UNB over phone yesterday (7 August).

"All contractual appointments will be cancelled. Since the government is not fully functional right now, the notification will be issued once the interim government takes charge. The cancellation orders will be made simultaneously," he said.

Officials appointed on a contractual basis during the Awami League government's tenure are largely individuals known to be aligned with the party. Following the 12th National Parliamentary Election, there was a significant increase in such appointments. 

Many officials who were not essential but trusted by the government were retained on a contractual basis after their terms ended. This led to a surge in contractual appointments, with over 50 officials being appointed after the 5 January election.

Former bureaucrats and public administration experts have said that these appointments were made as a "gesture of gratitude" to loyal officials by the Awami League government.

There is widespread dissatisfaction among career officials regarding these contractual appointments. 

Several senior officials at the secretariat, speaking anonymously to UNB, expressed their frustration, saying, "Many of us dream of becoming secretaries and holding significant ministry positions. However, due to the proliferation of contractual appointments, many are denied this opportunity. This is unacceptable."

They further explained that contractual appointments deprive deserving officials of their rightful positions. 

"When a position becomes vacant, another official is supposed to step in. However, due to these contractual appointments, the previous official continues in the role, preventing others from advancing. This has led many to retire with unfulfilled career aspirations," they said.

Given the change in government, key positions have already seen cancellations. 

On 7 August, the contract of IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun was terminated. Similarly, the former Prime Minister's Principal Secretary, Md Tofazzel Hossain Miah's contract was also annulled. 

Currently, there are 85 secretaries, senior secretaries or equivalent officials in the administration, out of whom 19 are on a contractual basis. 

The officials include Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain, NBR Chairman Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority Lokman Hossain Miah, and several others.

According to the Ministry of Public Administration, Public Safety Secretary Mostafizur Rahman was appointed as 'Chief Advisor' to the Executive Committee of the Smart Bangladesh Taskforce at the Prime Minister's Office for two years. Additionally, the tenure of former IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun was extended for another year on a contract basis on 5 July.

Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain's contract is set to end in October, but if the interim government cancels contractual appointments, he may not remain in position until then.