Dotcom seminar and NRB's anguish

Hassan A Quashem in Toronto

The just concluded NRB seminar last month stole the national spotlight, drawing the attention of the government and the civil society leaders, and revealed a lot that should have been known already. Often dismissed and occasionally admired by fanatics, top-notched bureaucrats and politicised civil societies dismiss the non-resident Bangladeshis (NRBs) as 'blue-collar' workers not sending enough remittances compare to their unskilled counterparts living in the Middle East.
   These self-styled dot-com scholars have chosen the right time and struck a right chord to boost their profile. Despite the organisers' plan to hide their political agenda without affirming any strong seal of approval of the ongoing drive against corruption and reforms, some of their members, however, couldn't hold their exuberance in flexing their partisan muscles by advancing their political pulpit: withdrawal of emergency, enrolment of Bangladeshi expatriates in US as voters and reserving their seats in parliament.
   
   Eight awards
   Expatriate scholars bagged eight awards and accolades while none of its demands has instantly inspired any administrative action removing the infamous Article 66 (C) of the constitution to grant equal birth rights with the resident Bangladeshis, barrier-free and preferential treatment for NRB investment, hassle-free custom check and among others, what they advocated, a solid platform for volunteering in the education sector.
   It didn't go far enough in debunking the myth of the politico-bureaucratic nexus that participated in a syndicated plunder of the national resources during the last four ruling regimes since eighties.
   None in the seminar, but an army general suggested some specifics - changing the constitution to grant equal rights to the dual citizens as granted to the residents of Bangladesh and setting up a development bank with foreign remittances.
   Though Bangladesh media routinely covers official reviews of the wage earners remittance flows as it plays a significant role in maintaining foreign exchange reserve and a comfortable balance of payments position, yet it was always reluctant to give due importance to the NRB'S demands. Former BNP finance minister Mr. Saifur Rahman boastfully claims that his reforms of foreign exchange regime and other budgetary incentives have induced the NRBs in sending more remittances into Bangladesh. But he stopped short of asking the government to restore equal status for the expatriates with Bangladeshis to facilitate the participation of NRBs in all spheres of public life.
   Neither the media and nor the civil societies who periodically articulate their views on fiscal and monetary issues and the critical role that remittances plays in keeping the foreign exchange reserve afloat, have hardly taken any strong position on expatriates' demands rather than following official footsteps.
   
   Strange treatment
   Skilled and unskilled NRB workers who live in North America, Europe and Australia where they obtain citizenship and world class healthcare and education facilities along with decent pay, perks and privileges to their immigrants, face strange treatment in their own country when they visit home.
   The patriotic mood in the establishment is aggressive instead of cool towards recognising the inalienable rights of the expatriates who assumed the citizenship of the west and it was always adversarial.
   The Government, which enforced Article 66(C) of the constitution barring the expatriates to participate in the parliamentary election on ground of foreign allegiance, is refusing to grant the same to its own citizens.
   Often the government and constitutional experts describe the issue as complex and divisive while the Government is functioning under the emergency rule and through executive orders. Several human rights organisations, which usually take interest in the populist issues to boost their organisational stake, have always ignored such allegations. Part three of the Article 26 (2) of the constitution declares law inconsistent with fundamental rights to be void and the state shall not make any law inconsistent with any provision of this part. Analysts feel that if this clause is applied with its intended purpose regarding the snatching of the fundamental rights of the expatriates, all debates and demands over the issue are quickly settled.
   Few understood and even fewer realised that expatriates assume the citizenship of the foreign country by affirming allegiance to the host states and Bangladesh depends on those countries for their generosity - official development assistance, grants, technology transfers and others. Affirming allegiance in citizenship awarding ceremony is more a routine than to switching allegiance from Bangladesh. Surge in inward remittances amply demonstrates the strong bond they hold with their motherland. The policy inducement, as some quarter claims, does not seem to have played any major role in sending increased remittances back to Bangladesh.
   
   Remittance
   An incremental and sustained level of remittance help the Government maintain a comfortable foreign exchange reserve, meeting payment obligations, ease balance of payments and providing the cash ready for essential imports. With the foreign aid dwindling and export earnings consistently missing the targets, wage earner's remittance is serving as cash cow without any string attached. Trend shows remittances now quadrupled averaging US$6 billion (FY206-07).
   A current Bangladesh Bank report shows similar trend during the first quarter of FY207-08 which is over $2 billon beating the average annual foreign assistance of $1.5 billion ever since its independence.
   Foreign aid was never all in cash and usually with conditions that forced Bangladesh to surrender its sovereignty in economic policy making. It has to swallow even bitter policy negotiations under structural adjustment programme with IMF to get the immediate budgetary support in order to meet the exigencies. Strategic policy papers being prepared by all the ministries now replace country economic memorandum used to be prepared by the World Bank for the annual aid club meeting.
   Most expatriates still wonder as to why the disgraced politicians who routinely solicit donations, take precious gifts like Mercedes, enjoy warm hospitalities, cherish expansion of their political outfits to boost their personal and political profile are so reluctant to remove the constitutional barrier in order to facilitate NRBs' participation in the country's electoral process?
   The seminar was confined to the limits of the rhetoric instead of addressing the thorny issues grappling the minds of the expatriates. The robust presence of the intellectual heavyweights in the seminar, its inauguration by the Chief Adviser and favourable media coverage has created such a hype which is bound to evaporate soon if the words don't match by deeds.
   Dotcom scholars claimed themselves as a second generation expatriates and through their families and educational peers have a built-in link with the political and bureaucratic power.
   Majority of the unskilled labour never heard about the 'Wage Earner's Development Bond', US Dollar denominated bonds and other high-yielding savings instruments designed to allure the NRBs. Neither Bangladesh missions abroad nor the relevant ministries ever felt any obligations to inform them, making them easy prey to the country's banking system that systematically deprive them of their entitled benefits.
   Even the RAJUK, CDA and other official arms responsible for housing and settlement as well as officials in the Bangladesh missions abroad never made any attempt to reach the expatriates about the reserved quota for residential plots advertised in the selected newspapers in Bangladesh. Nor do they feel any obligation to respond to the queries of the expatriates in their offices.
   Consider the roles of some of the major frontline ministries and departments that are mandated to discharge, among others, certain responsibilities which have direct relevance to the expatriates. Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Home, Finance, Civil Aviation, Works. Expatriates and welfare, Board of Investment and the public and private sector banks and financial institutions are at the forefront in providing services. All the foreign missions abroad issue and renew Bangladeshis having foreign passports (based on dual citizenship), provide no visa seals, process dual citizenship applications, respond to the enquiries etc to the non-resident Bangladeshis in their respective jurisdictions. In performing these duties, foreign missions understandably seek clearance, if necessary, from the ministry of home.
   
   Bitter experience
   Probably, a personal experience of this author in a recent visit (October 6 to November19, 2007) to Bangladesh preceding the dot com seminar might offer some insights for the readers about the pain one has to go through as soon as he arrives in Bangladesh.
   1. It took 3 additional hours to endorse the foreign exchange at the airport over the time required by others who choose not to declare their foreign currency at the port of entry. Even one has to walk at least three hundred yards from the place of signatories to get the seal of endorsement. The seal was interestingly missing for sometime.
   2. Usually a 10 to 15 days' timeframe, by any standard, should be considered enough for crediting the dollar denominated draft drawn in a foreign bank to the Non Resident Foreign Currency Account of the expatriates in the local scheduled banks. But a private bank failed to clear the bank draft during his one and a half months stay in Bangladesh. He had to carry the same draft back to Canada.
   3. With the help of my friends, he has secured audiences of some straight-faced bureaucrats in the ministry of works and Board of Investment (BOI). My presence has interrupted the work ministry official's private gossip and I had two questions and drawn negative answers without any reasonable interpretation and it lasted roughly two minutes.
   My visit to BOI was an utter disappointment. BOI, which is run apparently on ad-hoc basis, had as many as three, if not more, executive directors in 2007 alone. One senior official, who was officiating the executive director's position, seemingly on the verge of retirement, has not shown any interest and quickly refer me to an ADB consultant to respond to my queries who failed to provide any studies and sectoral investment guide other than explaining some fiscal incentives which is already known for years and can be found in the old official website of the BOI.
   4. The functioning of the high-profile foreign office is far more disastrous than the other Government offices. Me and my family members' dual citizenship file (BHC/CONS/752, dated September 2003) was duly initiated in July 2003 in Toronto and its fate is still hanging in the balance.
   High commission officials in Canada religiously advise the applicants to pursue their own file with the home ministry; perhaps suggesting them to make pay-off to the ministry official in order to clear their files.
   Some time in February 2006, following the lead, I met a bearded deputy secretary of the ministry of home who openly asked for money in exchange of his work.
   The author is a Michigan Journalism Fellow and a free-lance writer. His e-mail: hmohammad@esuite.ca

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Razzak Raza

The Government has granted Taka 18 crore for the financial year of 2007-2008 to the police to meet the cost of investigation. It had been a long-demanded police requirement that an investigating officer would be given necessary money to meet the cost of investigation. But the successive Governments refused to fulfill this popular demand. Now, the Government has approved money for investigation.
   It is the police sub-inspectors, who are appointed primarily to investigate cases, who had to spend money from their own pockets. However, the investigation is the prime area of police work where corruption can take root deeply. The sub inspectors step into the dark world of corruption primarily to realize the investigation cost and secondarily to earn extra money to maintain their family and lastly to amass wealth.
   But still the amount of money allocated for each case is far less than the police requirement. The Police Head Quarters demanded Tk 32.65 crore as investigation cost for the current financial year. But the allocated sum is only the half of their demand. The cases, in this purpose, have been divided into four categories. Each category has different rate of allocation, such as -
   Category 1: Robbery and murder
   Category 2: Abduction
   Category 3: Robbery and unnatural death
   Category 4: Others
   From now on investigation officers will get Tk 3,000 for the investigation cost of each murder and robbery case, Tk 2,000 for robbery and unnatural death case, Tk 1,000 for women and children repression related case, Tk 2,500 for abduction case, Tk 1,000 for law and order related cases and Tk 1,000 for investigation of other offences.
   The proposal projected investigation cost of each murder and robbery case at Tk 5,000, robbery case at Tk 3,000, women and children repression case at Tk 3,000, abduction case at Tk 4,000, law and order related case at Tk 2,000, unnatural death case at Tk 3,000 and other offences at Tk 2,000 (according to a news report September 27, 2007).
   
   Cost of culpable homicide
   Here, the division of categories needs to be reconsidered. In the Penal Code causing the death of a human being by a human being is termed as homicide. Homicide could be differentiated as culpable homicide and murder. If murder is construed only by the penal section of 302 the other sections would go to the fourth category. But that would be a loss for the concern investigating officers.
   It is easy to understand that the investigation of a culpable homicide sometimes costs more than that of a murder case. Moreover, a clueless murder case and a murder resulting to altercation between kinsmen never bear equal intricacy. A clueless murder case demands much more financial cost and professional arts. So, these two sorts of cases should never be measured in the same balance.
   Dacoity and robbery are the same kind of criminal offences which differ only by degrees. When five or more persons commit the offence, a robbery turns into a dacoity. So, the expenditure of investigation of a dacoity case may not differ from that of a robbery case at a large margin.
   Except robbery, murder, abduction, robbery and unnatural death all other cases are put into the forth category for which the rate of investigation is only 1,000 taka per case. By this classification the case of heinous grenade attack on the former Prime Minister Shake Hasina on 21 August/2004 can demand only 1,000 taka for its investigation cost. Isn't it ridiculous?
   Investigation of cases under the Explosive Substance Act or other cases relating to explosive needs huge amount of money. It is very difficult and sometimes nearly impossible to find out the culprits when a bomb was exploded. For no alamat is found with the offenders. Once the bomb is thrown, the offender is nothing more than a common person. It is the investigating officer who is to dig out the evidence. Very often he has to engage paid sources and buy related information. So, cases under Explosive Substance Act should be placed in the first category.
   
   Inadequate allocation
   Investigation of case, specially the intricate one, may not be finished by a single investigating officer. More than one officer and even more than one unit of the police may involve in the investigation of a single case. An investigating officer may transfer or he may be kept out of investigation. A case might be transferred to the CID from the district police. A case might be further investigated more than once. In case of further investigation usually a different investigating officer is needed. Now, what will happen when a case is investigated by more than one officer? Who will get the investigation cost? Is it possible to allocate money more than once for the same case?
   In my view, the classification should be re-thought and there must also be some flexibility to pay the money to the investigating officers. The supervising officers should be given the chance to apply their discretion to allocate the money for each case. There should be provision that the investigation cost will be regulated by the supervising officers.
   We must think about the other side of the problem, too. Police officers recording cases have the chance to manipulate the opportunity. Number of cases might be increased considering that every case has its cost. The more case you record the more money you get.
   
   Harassing people
   Corrupt police officers may record unnecessary cases which will be the tools of harassing innocent people. The officer-in-charge of the police station may be biased. He may engage his blue eyed boys in simple cases with higher rate of investigation cost.
   However, this is a new phenomenon for the police department. There are scopes of thinking and re-thinking. An agreeable mechanism should be developed in course of practice. The police bosses must be careful so that the opportunity could not be misused. They must cheek the internal corruption which could be practiced due to the use of allocated money as investigation cost.
   The allocation of money for the cost of investigation of cases speaks volumes of the past sufferings of the police officers. The allocation proves that the money is needed for the police sub-inspectors who are appointed primarily for investigation. The police bosses demanding Tk-32.65 crore for the current fiscal year, positively meant the business. It is not that, as the government did not allocate fund for the investigation cost, the police did not investigate. They performed the job assigned for and the necessary expenditure was met by hook or by crock. It is clear that the investigating officers of the police either spent money from their own pockets for performing the official work or they realized the money from the public, in plain word we may say they took bribe.
   The public perception of the police is that they are corrupt, that is, police take bribes from the public. Now, the allocation of money to meet the investigation cost will be a compensation for the financial loss of the police officers incurring during the investigation.

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