Budget lacks direction to combat corruption: TIB

Staff Reporter  :
Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has expressed deep concern over the Finance Minister’s refusal to acknowledge the rampant corruption and money laundering as well as the disregard for the principles of good governance and justice in his budget speech.

The organisation said that rampant corruption and siphoning off money were the mainly responsible for the ongoing economic crisis, growing income disparities, and dwindling foreign currency reserves.

TIB in a statement on Friday said the impact of COVID crisis and the Ukraine conflict have undoubtedly affected the economy, but it has not been cleared how the ambitious budget will be implemented without any direction to control the unbound corruption and money laundering which acted mainly as an obstacle to the sustainable and inclusive development.

TIB does not expect that this budget will play any role in benefiting the ordinary people who are out of the circle of power.

In the statement, Executive Director of the organisation, Dr. Iftekharuzzaman, said, “The Finance Minister has announced to address the dollar crisis, restructuring of foreign currency reserves, continuous surveillance on letter of credit and a commitment to reduce the exchange rate disparity. But he has overlooked unabated corruption and unchecked money laundering.”

“It is not unknown to the government that if corruption could be controlled to some extent, the national revenue would increase by at least 2-3 per cent and it would benefit the people. On the other hand, according to a highly reliable estimation, Bangladesh is losing at least $12 billion annually through money laundering,” he pointed out.

“There is no doubt that a budget lacking direction to control corruption and financial malpractices will only aid and abet further corruption and economic misconduct,” he stressed.

Appreciating the government for its delayed right decision on not extending the time frame for bringing back the money laundered abroad, Iftekharuzzaman has urged the government not to allow the scope to whiten black money through investment in plots and flats.

TIB said that the allowing whitening of black money is unconstitutional and discriminatory, and such provision should not be included in the income tax law.

“Based on our past experiences, no government has been able to generate the desired level of revenue by repeatedly allowing black money to be whitened in the country’s economy. Instead, it has only provided protection to the owners of black money and contributed to the deepening of corruption in reality,” Iftekharuzzaman said.

“The moral base of the government’s anti-corruption stance has become weaker. Therefore, the hope is that the government will demonstrate its strength by not succumbing to the pressure of self-interested groups and denying them this opportunity,” he added.

TIB has also stated that despite the proposed budget aiming to ensure social security and manage expenditure for the underprivileged in terms of income disparity, it has failed to uphold fairness.

The number of beneficiaries and the scope of social safety net programs have not increased proportionately with the rise in the number of people living below the poverty line.

Although there have been proposals to increase the amount of allowances in certain cases, in reality, it will not have any significant impact.

TIB hopes that before the budget is passed, the government will legislate fairness in these areas and incorporate a clear roadmap for transparent and accountable governance, take effective measures to combat corruption and financial irregularities.