Trackback URL
Download PDF Police, middlemen and a section of government officials illegally collect Tk 21 crore a year from the citizens as massive corruption and irregularities occur in issuing passports, a Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) research report said.
Of the amount, the officials and employees of the passport department get Tk 13.81 crore, while police of Special Branch get Tk 7.02 crore, revealed the report titled ‘Providing passport services: An investigative research’ at a roundtable at the National Press Club in the capital yesterday.
Terming having passport a citizen’s right, the report suggested elimination of bureaucratic tangles, modernising the department with technologies, enhanced budget and trained manpower to curb cheating and harassment in issuing passport.
An evil syndication of middlemen, police and officials of passport offices harasses and charges the passport seekers illegally, said TIB trustee board Chairman Prof Muzaffer Ahmad, who presided over the roundtable on ‘Corruption and harassment in providing passport services: Way to overcome’.
“If all the citizens of the country could be provided with passports without harassment and at low cost, these could be used during elections,” he said.
He suggested institutionalising ‘middlemen system’, if needed, stopping police enquiry and introduction of biometric passport.
According to the research findings, an individual has to pay on an average Tk 930 to a middleman that is shared among the officials and employees of passport offices and police, who, in many cases, do not properly enquire the addresses of the passport applicants.
Mohammad Wahid Alam and Shahnoor Rahman of TIB conducted the research during July 2005 and May 2006 that said 60 per cent of the respondents who underwent police enquiry said they were compelled to bribe the police.
On the other hand, 34.6 and 51.7 per cent applicants who secured their passports through middlemen and travel agencies, did not have to go through police enquiry, while the percentage was only 5.6 in case of the individuals who directly applied, the report said.
The TIB report said during the research period 61.20 per cent passports were not issued in time and reasons behind it were mentioned as delay in receiving police report, passport writing and negative police report.
Eighty-five per cent applicants secured passports in time when they applied through travel agencies and 70 per cent got it in time when they did it through middlemen while the percentage was only 45 when the individuals directly applied, the report revealed.
The middlemen use false addresses where they have their familiar police stations so that they can get the job done speedily, the TIB report said, adding that the middlemen also have an association that takes tolls from the general middlemen.
The research identified lack of manpower and budget, pressure on the employees who write the passports and insufficient fee for the police personnel who go far distances for enquiry as limitations of the passport department.
Prof CR Abrar, coordinator of Refugee and Migratory Movement Research Movement of Dhaka University, said there should be a system where the passport offices will be obliged to show cause if the passport is not issued in time.
Instead of the police’s going for enquiry, there should be provision for applicants’ attaching documents while submitting the application forms and correspondence between the passport office and the applicants should be through Internet to curb delay and corruption, former additional inspector general of police Masudul Haque said.
In reaction to the TIB report, Association of Travel Agencies Bangladesh President Mohaimen Saleh said the passport service is in the grip of the middlemen, which cannot be easily undone.
“That is why the travel agencies should be given licence so that they can provide services in this regard.”
Other speakers suggested entrusting the local police stations to verify the applicants’ addresses and decentralise the passport authorities to curb corruption and speed up the procedure.
TIB member Syed Didarul Alam, Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies Secretary General Ali Haider Chowdhury, member Abdul Alim, migration experts Mahbubur Rahman, Tanvir Siddiqui, Sumaiya Islam, and Anisur Rahman Khan also spoke at the roundtable.
TIB Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman and former adviser to caretaker government Hafizuddin Khan were present.
July 30th, 2007 at 9:07 pm
What a execellent social services this care taker Government is Providing to the people of Bangladesh! Execellent , Execellent!
Our young boys many are poverty stricken, many sell their lands, houses, ornaments to get a Passport & foreign Visa. Again they fall victims to the criminals who have no respect for their mothers, fathers, Brothers & Sisters.They help other criminals to sell their sisters.
Remember you criminals, They are your family members We are human & we are brothers & sisters unto one another.
We held executive positions in the time of Pakistan & Bangladesh, We helped poor people what ever way we could in jobs & social sectors .
We did not dream of taking any amount from the poor or needy!
We have seen the days where our relations achieved
ministrial positions & position in Administrative Laws & others just to earn a family fame ,not to loot the country!
They definitely helped there countrymen.
We have not seen these corruption under Paklisatni Rules.
We request the GOVT to root out these Bogus agents, and allow a smooth avenue in order that ordinary public can avail their passports with only predermined legal fees. No extras.
Thank you.