Advocate Md.Rayhan Ali: Corruption is another name for social degradation. Just as a developed country needs a corruption-free society to build a nation,so too corruption is a major obstacle to the development of a nation.  This virus called corruption is a major obstacle to the overall development of a country. Corruption refers to the moral or spiritual dishonesty or deviation of an ideology from a philosophical, theological,moral point of view. Corruption also involves large-scale bribery,embezzlement of property, and abuse of public and political power.  And this corruption is the main obstacle in the running of the state.

"Corruption is a cancer that destroys citizens` faith in democracy and diminishes the tendency to innovate and be creative,"said Joe Biden, the 46th president of the United States.

The country became independent from the Pakistani hyenas in exchange for the honor of about 3 million martyrs and 200,000 mothers and sisters. The only purpose of so much sacrifice is to live happily, peacefully in a corruption free motherland. But the question remains how much corruption we have been able to get after independence. More or less corruption is rampant in almost every sector.

According to Transparency International (TI), Bangladesh ranks 13th out of 180 countries in the list of `most corrupt` countries.

The Berlin-based anti-corruption watchdog has published a report on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). Last time (considering the situation in 2020), Bangladesh was ranked 12th in this list.  This time Bangladesh has improved by 1 step, in which it is ranked 13th in the list of `most corrupt` countries according to the hierarchy (from bad to good).  However, the score is the same as last time.

Considering the situation of 2021 in 180 countries and regions of the world, Bangladesh ranks 146th in the index (good to bad). TIB Executive Director Dr. Iftekharuzzaman commented that this position of Bangladesh is very disappointing. He said that in the case of Bangladesh, the index has been determined from the results of 6 surveys. Bangladesh was listed in the TI report as the most corrupt country in the world for 5 consecutive years from 2001 to 2005. Later, the situation in Bangladesh gradually started to improve. Denmark, Finland and New Zealand are jointly at the top of the list of least corrupt countries. These three countries got 8 out of 100 scores in the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).

 Norway, Singapore and Sweden are in second place in the list of 10 least corrupt countries; The score of these three countries is 75. Switzerland is in the third position with 84 scores. The Netherlands is in fourth place (score 62), fifth is Luxembourg (71), sixth is Germany (score 70), seventh is United Kingdom (score 6) and eighth is Hong Kong (8). Canada, Ireland, Estonia and Austria are joint ninth with 84 points.  Australia,Belgium,Japan and Uruguay are joint tenth with 63 points.

According to TI`s Corruption Perceptions Index,Bangladesh was number one on the list from 2001 to 2005. That was the top corrupt country. Bangladesh`s position was third in 2006,seventh in 2006, tenth in 2006,13th in 2009,12th in 2010,13th in 2012, 16th in 2013, 14th in 2014, 13th in 2015, 15th in 2016, 2017  18th in the year and lastly in the 13th place in 2016.  One thing that emerges from this survey is that our position on corruption has always been significant, which is very frustrating for us.

Due to various scandals in recent times, it has not been possible to change the index of corruption. Among the corruption scandals are: Mark scandal of Sonali Bank, money laundering of Bismillah group,corruption of Crescent and Thermax group,much talked about pillow scandal of Ruppur,curtain scandal of Faridpur Medical College Hospital, Basic bank scandal,casino bank scandal, John  The use of bamboo instead of rods in construction work in different places,corruption in house building for the homeless etc.

Due to public and open corruption to the public, including these scandals, we have not been able to achieve much success in the corruption index today as compared to last year. The development activities of this country are going ahead with the hand of Hon`ble Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Today, as part of that development, we are able to stand tall in the world court.  The transition from the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) of Bangladesh to developing countries has been through the visionary state management of this Sheikh Hasina. While this country is undergoing such development, the recent scandals have become a major obstacle to development due to the cycle of a group of insidious mahals. We are a nation of heroes so we should not be afraid of any evil power.  So

We have to find a way to get rid of this corruption.  Can`t we make Bangladesh a corruption free country? Can`t we jump into another liberation struggle to eradicate corruption from the soil of this country forever? Surely, with the overall cooperation of all,I will be able to rid this country of corruption.

The father of the Bengali nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in his last speech in the presence of the district governors said- `Do or do not do other work, stop corruption.  Only then will you see that all the defilements of the society have been removed and justice, honesty and rule of law have been established in the country. The development of the country is advancing at a rapid pace. In order to ensure the development of the people and the development of the country, we have no other option but to rid the society of corruption.

 In another speech,Bangabandhu said, "If there is corruption in any office-court and anyone asks you for a bribe, immediately inform me by writing on a post-card of three paise.I will take strict action against the corrupt so that corruption is stopped forever."

Although we are determined to fulfill Bangabandhu`s dream, the question remains as to how much we are working together in reality. Whose main goal was to save the interests of the motherland, how much are we paying for the dream left by her? We have to pay the price. All kinds of irregularities to eradicate the scourge of corruption from this country.  To prevent corruption, the government has formed the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). Has made specific laws to prevent corruption. The responsibility of suppressing corruption in all areas of the country should not be left to the government alone. It will be easier to prevent corruption if we all keep ourselves aware of our position and free from corruption.

It is true that the task of preventing corruption is very difficult and complex, but not impossible at all. If patriotism, strong morale and determined leadership take necessary steps in this regard, it will surely be able to bring down the pace of corruption in Bangladesh. And only then will the positive end of Bangabandhu`s call of that day be possible.

Author: Md.Rayhan Ali is the Advocate and Columnist at District Bar Association, Khulna. He can be reached at: advrayhan520@gmail.com