Editorial
DCC's lopsided priorities
Its new budget reveals this fact
THE Tk 1411.58 crore budget of Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) for FY 2009-10 unveiled by its Mayor Sadeq Hossain Khoka evokes more criticism than praise because of its flawed allocation pattern. The sector-wise allocations made in it are by and large reflective of lopsided prioritisation.
Cash-trapped as the DCC is in terms of meeting increasing recurring, developmental and maintenance expenditures of an ever-expanding metropolis it is imperative for the city corporation to make best use of its limited resources. It is of utmost importance in a shoe-string budget to set the priorities in a way that it can cater to demands for services in certain areas that are more pronounced than in other sectors. True, there may be competing priorities; yet, a balance can be struck in the allocation pattern so as to ensure flow finances to areas most in need of these. The new budget doesn't seem to have passed that test.
For instance, it has reduced allocation to the special cleaning drive by 11.36 percent from the last year's level; Tk 2 crore has been kept for car parking which is way below Tk 15 crore spent in the last fiscal. Just mark the opaque pattern of emphases: Tk 20 crore is allocated for construction and development of community centres in stark contrast to mere Tk one crore presumably for maintenance of slaughter houses and Tk 4 crore for equipment of food testing laboratory and Tk 2.5 crore for public toilets and dustbins. Even the allocation for park development has been reduced from Tk 7 to Tk 6 crore which is a great pity because even the previous allocation was itself ludicrously low. Keeping the city clean and breathing, is far from the DCC's list of agenda, so it seems. Obviously, the more basic and essential the civic amenity, is less attention it gets.
We are looking forward to a wholesale change in the approach.
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