To: farida_majid@hotmail.com
Subject: Right to Service
Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2012 10:14:30 +0600
http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=136811&date=2012-07-17
VOL 20 NO 216 REGD NO DA 1589 | Dhaka, Tuesday July 17 2012
Making a law to ensure better service to the people
M S Siddiqui
Citizens have to visit different service providing government offices at union, upazila, district, division and national levels for obtaining trade license,Tax Identification Number(TIN), income certificate, National Identity Card, property registration, mutation and demarcation, birth and death registration, issuance of no objection certificate, issuance of learners' and permanent driving license, registration of vehicle, gas and electricity connection etc.
Every citizen has the right to get such services from the public authorities well on time. These authorities include local government institutes at all tiers as well as government offices or companies. The government is under obligation to instruct the service rendering agencies that it is their duty to provide services to the citizens.
The citizens have the right to lodge complaint for any grievance relating to failure in the delivery of goods or services. The relevant department should have information and facilitation centre including customer care centre, call centre, help desk, people's support centre etc.
A Citizens' Charter usually provides information relating to the details of goods supplied and services rendered by public authorities, the name of persons or agencies through which the services are rendered, timings when the services are rendered, complaint redress mechanism including the time within which the complaint is disposed of, the officer to whom such complaint may be made, the name and addresses of individuals responsible for the delivery of services, or any other information relevant to delivery of goods or provision of services. (The Citizen's Charter was a British political initiative launched by the then Prime Minister, John Major, on 22 July 1991, less than a year into his premiership.It aimed to improve public services in the UK. - Wikipedia)
The head of department in each public authority should be responsible for updating and verifying the Citizens' Charter every year and the accuracy of the contents thereof. They are responsible for dissemination by making known and communicating the information to the public through notice boards, newspapers, public announcements, media broadcasts, the internet or any other means, including inspection of offices of any public authority by any citizen.
All complaints should be acknowledged within one day of the making of the complaint, by a receipt, issued in writing or through electronic means or through text message or through telephone or through any other means specifying the date, time, place, unique complaint number and particulars of receiver of complaint along with the stipulated time-frame within which the complaint will be redressed.
The grievance redress officer should, immediately after the expiry of the period, report every complaint which has not been redressed along with the nature of complaint, and reasons for non-redress to the head of the department of the public authority.
Every citizen having applied for services should be provided an application number by the concerned office and should be entitled to obtain and monitor status of his application online in accordance with such procedure as may be prescribed.
The department or local body should maintain status of all applications online and should be duty-bound to update the status of the same as prescribed by rules in this regard.
Every government servant who fails to deliver the services to a citizen within the stipulated time, should be liable to pay a penalty which is payable to the aggrieved citizen as compensatory cost.
In Bangladesh, rampant corruption, inefficiency and lack of transparency in the conduct of government affairs have created a distance between the citizens and the government; the citizens are suspicious of the government.
There are instances of public service guarantee acts in some countries. It has been framed on the idea of a citizen's charter. While a citizen's charter defines the quality of public services, these acts take it a step further by making a citizen's right to public service within the stipulated time legally binding, failing which the officials concerned can be penalised.
Information and communication technology (ICT) tools have made the process of implementation and monitoring streamlined, corruption-free, centralised, and less labour-intensive. The use of ICT tools for tracking and monitoring service delivery can bring about transparency, accountability and efficiency which will make it easier to deliver services on time as well as help in quick identification of irresponsible individuals or departments.
Bangladesh has Right to Information (RTI) Act, but people are yet to get its benefit due to ignorance of the existence of the act. If now a "Right to Service Act" is enacted, the combined effect of the two laws can ensure better service to the people. There are some citizen's charters displayed in some government offices very casually. This has been done without any legal obligation on the part of government officials. The proposed Right to Service Act would be implemented in the model of Right to Information Act.
Bangladesh needs to frame a 'Right to Service Act' to establish the rights of the citizens and obligation of the government under a legal frame work. Such a law will empower the citizens with the rights to get services within a deadline and ensure 100 per cent accountability of the officers of theimplementing agencies.
The writer is Part-Time Teacher, Leading University.shah@banglachemical.com
Thanks
M S Siddiqui
... for chemical & chemical technology
15, New Baily Road, Bldg # 4 (1st Floor),
Dhaka- 1000, Bangladesh
Hotline: +(880 16) 1BANCHEM
Phone: +(880 2) 8362853-4, +(880 2) 9346780-1
+(880 2) 8355725 (direct)
Cell: +(880 19) 19520138
Fax: +(880 2) 9341044
e-mail: shah@banglachemical.com
From: Bangla Chemical Shah [mailto:shah@banglachemical.com]
Sent: Wednesday, June 20, 2012 12:34 PM
To: 'Farida Majid'
Subject: Whistleblower and corruption
Thanks
M S Siddiqui
... for chemical & chemical technology
15, New Baily Road, Bldg # 4 (1st Floor),
Dhaka- 1000, Bangladesh
Hotline: +(880 16) 1BANCHEM
Phone: +(880 2) 8362853-4, +(880 2) 9346780-1
+(880 2) 8355725 (direct)
Cell: +(880 19) 19520138
Fax: +(880 2) 9341044
e-mail: shah@banglachemical.com
From: Bangla Chemical Shah [mailto:shah@banglachemical.com]
Sent: Friday, February 17, 2012 7:20 PM
To: 'Farida Majid'
Subject: RE: Thank you for signing Death Calls for Saudi Poet and Blogger.
Thanks
M S Siddiqui
... for chemical & chemical technology
15, New Baily Road, Bldg # 4 (1st Floor),
Dhaka- 1000, Bangladesh
Hotline: +(880 16) 1BANCHEM
Phone: +(880 2) 8362853-4, +(880 2) 9346780-1
+(880 2) 8355725 (direct)
Cell: +(880 19) 19520138
Fax: +(880 2) 9341044
e-mail: shah@banglachemical.com
From: Farida Majid [mailto:farida_majid@hotmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, February 11, 2012 11:20 PM
Subject: FW: Thank you for signing Death Calls for Saudi Poet and Blogger.
I signed the the petition with the following comment:
Sentiments expressed by Hamza Kashgari were actually lovely, and reminded me of
Bengali Muslim folk 'marefati' songs of old. For sure there is more
piety and love of the Nabi in these lines by this kid than what has been
shown by the bloated Lords of the Kingdom of Jahiliya (otherwise known
as Saudi Arabia) who have bulldozed the house where the Prophet was born
and razed the graves and archeological remnants of his relatives and
sahabas to create altars of worship to the God of Mammon, like the
hideous Mecca Clock Tower that physically and visibly belittles the Holy Kaba.
Please sign the petition soon.
To: farida_majid@hotmail.com
Subject: Thank you for signing Death Calls for Saudi Poet and Blogger.
From: petitions@care2team.com
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:05:02 -0800
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