How are they holding posts for 13 yrs?

There have been criticisms and controversies regarding the service quality of their organisations. There are allegations of irregularities and corruption against them. They have increased the price of water year after year to put the liability of their mismanagement on the shoulders of the consumers. They resorted to irregularities to retain their position. In this way, they have been holding the top position of their organisations for 13 years.

They are Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (WASA) managing director (MD) Taqsem A Khan, Chattogram WASA MD KM Fazlullah and MD of Khulna WASA Md Abdullah.

They were appointed as the managing directors of WASA after the Awami League-led coalition came into power in 2009. Since then, they have got contractual re-appointment some four to seven times through manipulation. Such a long tenure of these three MDs is unprecedented in the history of WASA.    

The WASA operates under the WASA act of 1996. According to the act, the chief executive of this organisation is the MD. However, there is no mention of how many years an MD can hold the post or how many times a person can be appointed as the MD in the act.

According to the recommendations of the WASA board, the MD is appointed by the government. The board fixes their salaries and allowances. The WASA board is formed with representatives from professional organisations in addition to the representatives from the government.

Speaking to Prothom Alo, Adil Muhammad Khan, executive director of the Institute for Planning and Development, said, “The government appoints trusted persons for different posts in WASA considering ‘certain benefits'. Therefore, the government remains sceptical in case of any allegation against them. And the MDs unlawfully manipulate the board members.”

AKM Fazlullah was appointed as the WASA chairman on 6 July 2009. The contract was extended for another year later. In 2011, the post of MD was created in Chattogram WASA following Dhaka WASA and Fazlullah was appointed for the post. Fazlullah, who went to retirement in 1998, is 80 now.

Lastly, the government appointed Fazlullah for three years on 1 October 2020. The chairman of the board which recommended Fazlullah’s reappointment is Md Jahangir Alam, vice-chancellor of the University Of Science & Technology Chattogram (USTC). There are allegations that Fazlullah had a hand in Jahangir Alam’s appointment as the chairman of that board.

According to the documents of WASA, Fazlullah used to get Tk 175,000 per month as horonourium initially. Later, his salary was increased to Tk 284,000 after he applied for a pay raise.

After that, he applied for another pay raise requesting to increase his basic salary to Tk 450,000 per month. Following that, a four-member committee was formed for assessment of the appeal.

Chattogram WASA has raised the price of water 14 times in the 13-year tenure of the current MD. The price per unit (1000 litres) of water was Tk 6.58 for residential connection, which has increased To 18 now. The rate of water for commercial connection is Tk 37 per unit.

There are several allegations and controversies including over the appointment of Taksim six times in a row and his manipulation in the recruitment of others. The Anti-corruption Commission (ACC) is investigating the corruption charges against him. The official of the organisation does not open up about him out of fear. 

The notification for the recruitment of the WASA managing director asked for 20 years of mandatory experience in water supply and sanitation or general administration and management at the senior level. At that time, Taksim had no such experience in this regard. Yet he was hired. At that time his monthly salary was Tk 120,000. Now his gross monthly salary is some 625,000 taka.

The price of water and the salary allowances of the WASA managing director is rising simultaneously.  In July 2009, the price of water per unit at the residential level was Tk 6.04. Now the price of the same amount of water is Tk 15.18. Water prices have increased 14 times in 13 years.

Meanwhile, there are a number of allegations against Taksim, including increasing project costs, creating a syndicate for hiring contractors, bribery and contractual recruitment. The ACC identified 11 corrupted sectors of WASA and sent a report to the ministry. A two-member committee was formed in recent times to investigate the allegations of corruption.

Md Abdullah was appointed as the managing director of Khulna WASA, established in 2008, on 25 October 2009. There are several accusations against him, including creating arbitrary conditions on the age limit for appointing MD.

Md Abdullah gets a monthly salary of Tk 250,000. After paying the income tax and other government expenses, he withdraws some Tk 216,000 every month.

Although he gets a large sum, he is not able to serve the consumers. The water supplied by Khulna Wasa is salty. Severe scarcity of water emerges in the dry seasons. However, water prices have increased six times in seven years. The company implemented the latest water price hike on 1 September. According to the new rates, the cost of water per unit for residential supply is Tk 8.98 paisa. And the rate for commercial customers is Tk 14 per unit of water.

Nazmul Azam, general secretary of the Consumers Association of Bangladesh’s (CAB) Khulna branch said, "It is a big surprise that the tenure of the WASA MD has been increased. WASA provides salty water for three months a year. They mix preserved water with salty water and sell them to customers in those three months. It's clearly a fraudulence with the consumers.”