The Constitution and the duty of the Government
Sayed Javed Ahmad
Probably everyone except for the high government officials witness the destitute people in and around the city on a daily basis on their commute to and from work. The high government officials do not see them because they are usually in high four wheel drive Pajero's with tainted screens rushing to their work locations on a road cleared by the traffic police and their body guards.
Amazing but true, that our elected officials think of themselves very highly once they get elected by the people and takes over their job or assumes power. No matter what background they come from they no longer take any hardship in commuting thus distancing themselves from people and reality.
They would block all the streets that falls on their way in order to rush to their destinations without showing any concern for the public who are blocked in the street sometimes for hours who may too have an urgent matter to handle. This is how senseless our government officials are. They love to become "untouchables", thus no longer care to see how the general public is doing.
Unfortunately, most of them do not even know where they got themselves into and for what reason. Some of them do not even know that there is a book or document called the "Constitution" that they should know by heart. Our academic institutions do not have any mechanism to introduce this document at any level of our educational system. Thus, none of the citizens know about it or bump into it even accidentally in their lifetime. But we could at least hope that the government official after taking oath to server the republic should get to know about it and read to understand it. Because this particular book is the main guiding force for the national vision and mission.
The Constitution instructs the government officials about their purpose of being in office for a fixed term and what is expected of them. It declares,
"21. Duties of citizens and of public servants.
(1) It is the duty of every citizen to observe the Constitution and the laws, to maintain discipline, to perform public duties and to protect public property.
(2) Every person in the service of the Republic has a duty to strive at all times to serve the people…"
"Supremacy of the Constitution.
(1) All powers in the Republic belong to the people, and their exercise on behalf of the people shall be effected only under, and by the authority of, this Constitution.
(2) This Constitution is, as the solemn expression of the will of the people, the supreme law of the Republic, and if any other law is inconsistent with this Constitution and other law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void."
From the above passages we can see that the constitution is regarded as the source of laws and the civil servants are instructed to strive to serve the people. The constitution acknowledges that the people are the source of all powers in a republic through solemn expression of the will of people. And any contradictions with the constitution are void and not to be tolerated. It says further -
"11. Democracy and human rights.
The Republic shall be a democracy in which fundamental human rights and freedoms and respect for the dignity and worth of the human person shall be guaranteed, and in which effective participation by the people through their elected representatives in administration at all levels shall be ensured…"
"31. Right to protection of law.
To enjoy the protection of the law, and to be treated in accordance with law, and only in accordance with law, is the inalienable right of every citizen, wherever he may be, and of every other person for the time being within Bangladesh, and in particular no action detrimental to the life, liberty, body, reputation or property of any person shall be taken except in accordance with law.
32. Protection of right to life and personal liberty.
No person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty save in accordance with law.
33. Safeguards as to arrest and detention.
(1) No person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being informed, as soon as may be of the grounds for such arrest, nor shall he be denied the right to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice…"
How can the citizens uphold the mandates of the constitution to ensure their own freedom and well being if they do not even know what and how they are supposed to do so? The constitution is written for the citizens and the citizens too are totally unaware of it!
The Constitution of Bangladesh bestows a sacred task on the government to deal with the basic necessities of the citizens, here is a mandate -
"15. Provision of basic necessities.
It shall be a fundamental responsibility of the State to attain, through planned economic growth, a constant increase of productive forces and a steady improvement in the material and cultural standard of living of the people, with a view to securing to its citizens-
(a) the provision of the basic necessities of life, including food, clothing, shelter, education and medical care;
(b) the right to work, that is the right to guaranteed employment at a reasonable wage having regard to the quantity and quality of work;
(c) the right to reasonable rest, recreation and leisure; and the right to social security, that is to say to public assistance in cases of undeserved want arising from unemployment, illness or disablement, or suffered by widows or orphans or in old age, or in other such cases…"
Bangladesh government is far away from achieving their targets as laid down in the constitution. People in this country still lives in hunger, poverty and insecurity. Majority of the citizens here are illiterate. Further we note on point 16 of the constitution,
"16. Rural development and agricultural revolution.
The State shall adopt effective measures to bring about a radical transformation in the rural areas through the promotion of a agricultural revolution, the provision of rural electrification, the development of cottage and other industries, and the improvement of education, communications and public health, in those areas, so as progressively to remove the disparity in the standards of living between the urban and the rules areas…"
In reality, we see most of the development focus are more urban centered and less rural. The government totally ignores the constitutional directives in this regards no matter which political government comes into power. This is never a priority on the government agenda. As a result they totally violate the constitution.
We are facing population pressure that multiplies our economic difficulties. We have lost respect for one another as we now consider each other an open competitor in the urban jungle. People are migrating to the cities hoping to survive by clinging to something for a while. Those who fail in competition choose unethical and dangerous means to survive.
Corruption in a society can be largely reduced if access to food, health-care, housing, education, and jobs are ensured. People normally engage in corruption when there is lack of security, mainly economic. Jobs leads to income, income leads to food, housing, education and health-care. Therefore, in a country where jobs are scarce and where there are no social safety net in place crime and corruption tend to go high. Even the political parties become corrupt due the very same reasons. As a result when they ascend to power they try to ensure their personal economic safety for the future not only for themselves but also for their offspring. Thus, crime and corruption continues to prevail. The warning against "unearned income" has been there in the constitution but our governments never paid any attention to it -
"20. Work as a right and duty.
(1)…
(2) The State shall endeavor to create conditions in which, as a general principle, persons shall not be able to enjoy unearned incomes, and in which human labor in every form, intellectual and physical, shall become a fuller expression of creative endeavor and of the human personality…"
According to the constitution, the government is obligated to 'create conditions' for fair 'human labor' opportunities for a 'creative' environment. And fighting crime and corruption is fundamental to meet this requirement.
All our concerns boil down to one single area, which is "economics". It is the major factor for our people not to behave the way they should. With it comes our poor basic foundation. Our educational system is not preparing us the way we should be prepared. Through cultural invasions, we are adopting more and more foreign philosophies and lifestyle that is full of greed and immorality. Our constitution declares preservation of our culture and heritage when it says,
"23. National Culture.
The State shall adopt measures to conserve the cultural traditions and heritage of the people, and so to foster and improve the national language, literature and the arts that all sections of the people are afforded the opportunity to contribute towards and to participate in the enrichment of the national culture…"
Our thinking patterns are today changed through the subliminal messages we receive from our daily cable TV transmissions – domestic and foreign alike. As if we have chosen to corrupt our minds and souls knowingly and willingly without questioning the programs we view. As a result, our worldly expectations and love for materials have increased and we do not mind attempting illegal means to achieve our dreams and desires. Instant gratification has now become the cult for most of us. For instance, our constitution clearly prohibits prostitution and gambling and advocates in their prevention as the following quote from the constitution indicates,
"18. Public health and morality.
(1) The State shall regard the raising of the level of nutrition and the improvement of public health as moving its primary duties, and in particular shall adopt effective measures to prevent the consumption, except for medical purposes or for such other purposes as may be prescribed by law, of alcoholic and other intoxicating drinks and drugs which are injurious to health.
(2) The State shall adopt effective measures to prevent prostitution and gambling…."
But in reality we see existence of Jouno Polli (meaning Sex Villages) in different parts of the country, which is a direct violation of the constitution. The constitution also reveals the following information,
"2A. The state religion.
The state religion of the Republic is Islam, but other religions may be practiced in peace and harmony in the Republic…
8. Fundamental principles.
(1) The principles of absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah, nationalism, democracy and socialism meaning economic and social justice, together with the principles derived from them as set out in this Part, shall constitute the fundamental principles of state policy.
(1A). Absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah shall be the basis of all actions…"
It may come as a surprise to the reader to read the parts above as it makes clear that Bangladesh is founded on the notion of Islam being the state religion and 'absolute trust and faith on Almighty Allah" is stressed enough at another part and on preamble. Whereas, an impression is given by the government that Bangladesh is founded under the notion of 'Religious Neutrality', which is not true.
The government is also obligated to create provision for free and compulsory education, which is an integral part of proper human resource development -
"17. Free and compulsory education.
The State shall adopt effective measures for the purpose of -
(a) establishing a uniform, mass-oriented and universal system of education and extending free and compulsory education to all children to such stage as may be determined by law ;
(b) relating education to the needs of society and producing properly trained and motivated citizens to serve those needs; removing illiteracy within such time as may be determined by law…."
Recently, our PM has declared her government's intention to make education free for all citizens. She should make sure that it not just a political lip service and it actually happens. What is happening in reality, improper production of improperly trained citizens is not serving our needs. It may be addressing 'illiteracy' to some extent, but not the need of the society. In other words, we are producing human resources without any prior planning or knowing where to place them after their trainings. As a result, we are not in a position to handle the following constitutional mandate,
"20. Work as a right and duty.
(1)Work is a right, a duty and a matter of honour for every citizen who is capable of working, and everyone shall be paid for his work on the basis of the principle "from each according to his abilities to each according to his work"…"
The government is in obligation to take care of the destitute by creating jobs with decent pay. Full attention is required to be given on this matter allocating and utilizing our resources to achieve the goals. Citizens are the partners in this venture with the government in the lead. But it is not only the duty of the citizen to feed the hungry or clothe the destitute. When we have a functional government then it is primarily up to them to take care of the poor people. Instead of seeking handouts from people and sleeping in the streets, they should know where to turn to for help if and when they needed any. The government should have welfare and rehabilitation program to take care of people off track to help then to return to a normal respectable lifestyle in the society. Because it the duty of the government to do so and considering the size of national resources and access to power they are in a position to do something about it. The citizens have all the right to demand this service from the government.
Finally, here are some suggestions for the government –
i. Make it mandatory for all government officials including the bureaucrats to study the constitution with understanding, and hold an exam that they need to pass in order to stay in service. Else they would not read it.
ii. Make it mandatory for all students at the high school or college level to study the constitution in order to graduate. Otherwise no one would read it.
iii. Make it mandatory for all government officials to commute to work by available public transportations. Else they would not come in contact with the citizens nor would they get to know the problems the citizens' face.
iv. Stop using 'You Excellency", "Your Highness", "Your Honor", etc in addressing the government officials, because there is no such thing as "Honorary Public Servant".
v. Stop giving out cars to the government officials, as our country is not rich enough to afford the cost of purchase and maintenance.
vi. Stop begging to other nations for handouts. Otherwise we would never come out of the 'bottomless basket'.
vii. Encourage and facilitate local researchers, so that they could be innovative in solving their own problems utilizing whatever resources we have on hand.
viii. The concept of globalization is falling apart; therefore, focus on local economy.
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