Former Secretary Claims to Hold Evidence of ‘Unbounded Corruption’ by Eight Interim Government Advisers

ABM Abdus Sattar, the personal secretary to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, has claimed to possess evidence of “unbounded corruption” by eight advisers of the interim government. The retired civil servant stated that no appointments or transfers to significant posts occur without coordination with these advisers.

Abdus Sattar made these allegations on Friday during a seminar held at the BIAM auditorium in Dhaka. However, he refrained from naming the advisers in question.

A member of the 1982 BCS Administration Cadre, Sattar currently serves as General Secretary of the Officers’ Club and President of the Anti-Discrimination Employees Unity Forum.

The seminar, titled “Hope for the July Uprising and the Future of Public Administration”, was organised by the Bangladesh Administrative Service Association, a body representing administrative cadre officers. Beginning at 4:00 PM and concluding around 7:30 PM, the event was attended by nearly all top-level officials of the administrative cadre.

In his speech, Abdus Sattar said, “I am deeply disheartened. Let’s say the character of civil servants has deteriorated. But I can provide concrete evidence of unbounded corruption by at least eight advisers who took office through the blood of the July uprising. The intelligence agencies possess evidence of this corruption, yet no action is being taken.” His remarks were met with applause and shouts of “Exactly, exactly” from the audience.

He went on to question why no action was taken even after 2 billion BDT (Taka) was reportedly found in the bank account of an APS (Assistant Personal Secretary) of one adviser. “Can someone like Nurjahan Begum really run a ministry like Health? Is it appropriate to place key ministries such as Local Government and Youth & Sports under the control of an inexperienced adviser?” he asked.

According to Sattar, corruption has not decreased since the fall of the Awami League government following the student and public uprising, but has in fact worsened. He claimed that an Assistant Commissioner (Land) demanded 3 million BDT for the mutation of land for a school, and a UNO near Dhaka demanded 2 million BDT to approve a factory layout.

Abdus Sattar further added, “I sit in a political party’s office. Since 5 August last year, thousands of officers and employees have crowded into that office. My boss, Tarique Rahman, called me and asked, ‘What’s going on? Who are these people and why are they coming here?’ I told him they are all victims of deprivation, wronged over the past 15 years under Hasina’s regime. They rushed in after her fall, hoping for justice. He said, ‘It’s not a good sign for in-service officials to visit a political office. Please ask them to stop.’ I then hung a notice at the office gate: ‘No in-service official may visit this office. If there is any issue, please go to the Officers’ Club.'”

In response to Abdus Sattar’s comments, former secretary and Rector of the Bangladesh Public Administration Training Centre (BPATC), AKM Abdul Awal Mazumder, said that Sattar is a responsible individual and not one to make claims without evidence. “I’m sure he has proof. The government should now identify who those eight advisers are. If advisers are involved in such actions, then blaming politicians alone is futile.”

The three-and-a-half-hour seminar included wide-ranging discussions on irregularities and corruption within the administrative cadre over the past 15 and a half years of the previous government. Several speakers questioned how civil servants became tools of that regime, and called for measures to prevent such political alignment in future.

The event’s chief guest was M Siraj Uddin Mia, Principal Secretary to the Chief Adviser. The keynote speaker was Professor Niaz Ahmed Khan, Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University. Other speakers included Senior Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration Mokhlesur Rahman, Secretary of the National Parliament Secretariat Kaniz Mowla, Professor Syeda Lasna Kabir of the Public Administration Department at Dhaka University, and Professor Shafiul Islam from the Public Administration Department at Rajshahi University.

The Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University remarked that during the previous government’s tenure, politicians had devastated public institutions. “Capable officers were sidelined. Since 5 August, people have learned to ask questions. Now, no one will be able to get away with wrongdoing. We must find a way to keep the administration free from political influence.”

The Principal Secretary to the Chief Adviser said that the 2018 safe roads movement reached its final culmination through the July uprising. “Over the past 16 years, the state and its institutions have been weakened. Now it is time for officers to decide which path they wish to follow – the one they’ve been on for years, or the new road that lies ahead.”