ACC cannot shirk its responsibilities

An ACC case kept the innocent jute mill worker Jaha Alam behind bars for nearly three years. File photo of Jaha Alam
An ACC case kept the innocent jute mill worker Jaha Alam behind bars for nearly three years. File photo of Jaha Alam

No matter how much the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) disclaims any fault, it remains amid controversy. It was the ACC case that kept the innocent jute mill worker Jaha Alam behind bars for nearly three years. He was only recently granted bail. And ACC merely passed the blame onto the bank, saying that deeper investigations proved Jaha Alam of Tangail was not the actual culprit, it was Salek of Thakurgaon. It was only after a Prothom Alo report on the matter appeared on 28 January that the matter was eventually sorted out.

During the hearing of the case on Wednesday, the High Court called for all relevant documents and raised the question of ACC’s silence even after the mistakes in investigation were evident in February last year. The ACC had no plausible response and are now trying to shirk their responsibility by putting the blame in certain bank officers who had filed the case. Even if the wrong person was sent to jail because of the bank officers, what was ACC’s investigating team doing? Complaints can be lodged against anyone, but ACC has to determine the truth behind the allegations. This commission cannot simply send innocent people to jail and save the guilty.

People resort to ACC because they feel government agencies may not run investigations properly or will be biased. The commission should admit its mistake and take action against its officers involved in the investigations. It must provide Jaha Alam with due compensation. ACC claims to be an independent commission, but the general perception is that their actions and behavior simply reflect the government’s wishes.

Accused persons are getting away free, even after misappropriating millions of taka, yet ACC sent an innocent man to jail in a forgery case. The court righty remarked that there is no use for the cat that can’t catch the mouse. It is still to be seen whether such a scathing remark makes any difference to the ACC authorities.
Statements by the senior officials of the organisation indicate that they are sincere in their efforts against corruption. But they cannot be selective, only running after the small fry, but letting the big fish get away. Public perception is that ACC only files charges against those whom the government wants to catch. They remain silent on those whom the government wants to shield.

And at a juncture when ACC is in a fix over the Jaha Alam case, its chairman has dismissed the Transparent International Bangladesh survey as one-sided. He may have pleased the government authorities, but this has just made it harder to rein in corruption. It would do well if he strengthened the drive against corruption rather than criticise the TIB report. It is easy to wake a sleeping person, but not a person who has his eyes wide shut. A wooden cat is of no use. It takes a real cat to catch the mouse.