TIB cautious in welcoming govt’s ‘realisation’

Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), the corruption watchdog, has cautiously welcomed the government’s decision to discard the provision of whitening black money in the proposed budget for the next fiscal (2021-22), reports UNB.

Besides, the TIB is also drawing attention to the fact that this discriminatory and unconstitutional benefit should not be included in any other way out of respect to the honest taxpayers.

The TIB, however, has expressed concern over the lack of a clear roadmap to ensure transparency and prevention of corruption in the overall budget implementation, not just the increase in allocations to critical sectors such as the health sector to control Covid-19 pandemic.

TIB executive director Iftekharuzzaman in a statement on Thursday night said despite strong objections and protests from all quarters, finance minister AHM Mustafa Kamal allowed whitening black money in the outgoing fiscal year (2020-21).

“The decision of the finance minister not to renew the scope of whitening of black money in the proposed budget for the next fiscal year can be taken as a realisation of the government,” he said.

The TIB executive director said they want to believe that the authorities will not continue this unethical benefit under the pressure of a vested quarter again in future, while respecting the prime minister’s dictum of "zero tolerance against corruption".