Editorial
Retrieving kickback proceeds
There is so much to learn from the exercise
THE arrival in Dhaka of a US-UK delegation to seek Bangladesh's assistance in retrieving $200 million kickback allegedly given to Begum Zia's son Arafat Rahman Koko and a number of ministers and leaders of the BNP led four-party alliance government is a significant development. The involvement of the US justice Department and the FBI in the matter has surely brought it into a larger focus.
The bid to unearth the huge illegal transaction, which the delegation is now dealing with, can be an eye-opener to the wider malaise of money laundering taking place in various forms, as international rackets are active all over the world. In this instance, the kickback money is suspected to have been deposited in banks across 20 countries.
The Bangladesh Bank took some steps in recent years to counter money laundering. But obviously there is so much to be done to outwit the money launderers drawing upon the international experiences and know-how.
It is more than an issue of financial irregularity, the unearthing of the scam might impel us to think anew about the magnitude and type of corruption at the top level and strengthen our ramparts against such malfeasance.
The government, we believe, should do as much as it can to get to the bottom of the matter. The law and finance ministries, Attorney General's Office and the BB will have to work in tandem to facilitate the process of retrieval of the kickback proceeds. It will be a good test of their efficiency in dealing with such cases, particularly when they are getting international assistance from agencies like the FBI. A successful investigation and recovery of the money will prove our determination to combat corruption in high places. The investigation process may also help identify more international rackets that worked in collaboration with corrupt elements in the country.
The issue is particularly significant for a country like Bangladesh where a large number of politicians and bureaucrats have time and again faced corruption charges.
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