Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has expressed deep concern and resentment over three recent incidents.
TIB strongly demands that authorities properly investigate each of these incidents without delay and that those responsible face exemplary punishment.
Reliable media sources claim that the violent looting, vandalism, and encroachment of the RADDA MCH-FP Center occurred at midnight in the presence of police, with the support of a Member of Parliament (MP) from a reserved seat. There was also a dispute within the local BNP over control of a jalmahal (water body) in Kishoreganj that resulted in over fifty injuries, as well as the vandalism of a content creator's office.
These incidents are not isolated but an ominous sign for the government and the ruling party, TIB said.
The organization called for exemplary accountability for those involved and a nationwide self-purification drive within the party.
In a statement issued on Sunday, TIB Executive Director Dr. Iftekharuzzaman described the looting, vandalism, and encroachment of RADDA MCH-FP as an embarrassing example for the government and the ruling party.
He said, "This nonprofit organization has been providing healthcare to underprivileged and vulnerable mothers and children for fifty years. It has now been demolished before hundreds of people, under the patronage of a reserved-seat Member of Parliament and in the presence of police. For its citizens, what kind of example is the ruling party providing?”
Zaman said “This party received a historic electoral mandate following the violent July uprising that overthrew an authoritarian kleptocracy. What message do its leaders and activists convey to the citizens through such actions? The reckless conduct of the previous authoritarian government is still fresh in public memory. In this context, have the BNP’s policymakers ever thought of the consequences of the continuing encroachment and extortion of a large section of the party’s leaders and activists?”
In some cases, such misconduct has embarrassed the party’s senior leadership, prompting them to take organizational measures, including expulsion, the statement stated.
However, stronger preventive strategies are lacking. At the same time, those involved in these abuses of power are directly or indirectly affiliated with the ruling party, which has left law enforcement agencies unable to take effective action, as per the statement.
In reality, a culture of arbitrariness, corruption, irregularities, and impunity is re-establishing itself, and the government will have to bear responsibility for it on many fronts.
