Reform Commission Proposes 47-Point ACC Overhaul

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has made 47 recommendations for reforms to transform the ACC into an effective state institution. These include forming separate task forces led by the ACC, comprising high-level officials from various agencies for investigating high-profile corruption cases like money laundering, and giving the commission 'independent' and 'constitutional' recognition. This information was revealed in the full report of the ACC Reform Commission published on the Cabinet Division's website yesterday, Saturday (February 8). The Reform Commission submitted its preliminary report to the Chief Advisor on January 15.

The Reform Commission's report includes 37 recommendations to build the ACC into an 'effective' state institution, along with 10 state initiatives to prevent abuse of power and change the law. 

According to the first recommendation, Article 20(2) of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh must be replaced as follows: The state shall create such conditions in which no person can abuse constitutional and legal powers for personal gain, nor enjoy unearned income as a general principle. This new provision will emphasize that both intellectual and manual labor should evolve into creative efforts and fuller expression of human personality, as stated in the Constitution.

The second recommendation suggests that instead of the National Integrity Strategy, a national anti-corruption strategy should be formulated to define the anti-corruption duties and responsibilities of various state and non-state institutions. Under Article 77 of the Constitution, a law should be enacted to establish the position of Ombudsman and empower the Ombudsman to ensure the proper implementation of this strategy.

The third recommendation mandates permanently abolishing any state practices that legalize income without a legitimate source.

According to the fourth recommendation, a law must be enacted to prevent and resolve conflicts of interest to prevent abuse of state and legal powers.

The fifth recommendation states that through a proper legal framework, all information regarding the identity of the real or ultimate beneficiaries of companies, trusts, or foundations should be registered and published in the public interest. 

The sixth recommendation calls for necessary reforms in election laws to ensure transparency and integrity in political and electoral financing.

The seventh recommendation requires the complete (end-to-end) automation of service operations and information management of all government institutions, particularly police stations, registration offices, revenue offices, passport offices, and sectors of service and service provision such as education, health, local government, district, and upazila administration.

According to the eighth recommendation, under Article 21 of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC), private sector bribery should be recognized as a separate offense punishable by law.

The ninth recommendation suggests implementing Common Reporting Standards in Bangladesh to ensure transparency in financial transactions domestically and internationally.

The tenth recommendation states that Bangladesh should officially become a member of the Open Government Partnership.

The eleventh recommendation proposes giving the ACC constitutional recognition as an institution.

According to the twelfth recommendation, the number of ACC commissioners should be increased from three to five, with at least one female commissioner.

The thirteenth and fourteenth recommendations state that Section 8(1) of the ACC Act, 2004 should be replaced as follows: 'A person with at least 15 years of experience in law, education, administration, judiciary, disciplinary forces, financial institutions, accountancy and auditing profession, or governance and anti-corruption activities, whether in public or private institutions, shall be eligible to become a commissioner.' The term of the ACC commissioner should be set at four years instead of five.

The fifteenth recommendation states that the name of the selection committee formed under Section 7 of the ACC Act, 2004 should be changed to 'Selection and Review Committee'.

Recommendations sixteen to eighteen address the formation, duties, and functions of the proposed 'Selection and Review Committee'.

Recommendations nineteen to twenty-one discuss reforms in the ACC's Complaint Management, Investigation, Inquiry, and Prosecution processes. Recommendation twenty-two states that the mandatory pre-investigation inquiry process should be abolished for every offense listed in the ACC schedule.

The ACC should formulate a Prosecution Policy and amend Section 20 of the ACC Act, 2004 to grant the police the authority to investigate complaints referred by the ACC.

According to the twenty-fourth recommendation of the ACC Reform Commission, Section 32A of the ACC Act, 2004 should be repealed. The twenty-fifth recommendation states that 'Special Judge Courts' should be established in every district where the ACC has an office, and as new offices are established, special courts should be set up in those districts within the shortest possible time.

Recommendation twenty-six states that the feasibility of implementing the Plea Bargaining system for ACC-scheduled offenses should be thoroughly reviewed and analyzed through comparative analysis for realistic decision-making.

Recommendation twenty-seven states that Memorandums of Understanding should be signed with agencies such as the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), Directorate of Registration, etc. to designate focal persons for ACC's assistance.

According to the twenty-eighth recommendation, separate task forces must be formed under the leadership of the ACC, comprising high-level officials from various relevant agencies for each complaint, particularly for investigating high-profile corruption cases or corruption involving key state figures, including money laundering.

The twenty-ninth recommendation states that Section 309 of the Income Tax Act, 2023 should be amended to ensure that this section does not apply to any information or documents requested by the ACC.

According to the thirtieth recommendation, if the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and the Implementation Monitoring and Evaluation Division (IMED) discover or suspect any corruption, it must be brought to the attention of the ACC, and the ACC should have access to necessary information through the signing of Memorandums of Understanding.

Recommendations thirty-one to forty-seven address the institutional and financial management of the ACC. 

These include increasing the number of ACC Directors General from eight to twelve and forming twelve sub-divisions under them, establishing ACC district offices in each district with adequate logistical capabilities, recruiting the Secretary through competitive and open processes through advertisements, allowing the Secretary to be appointed on a contractual basis by taking leave from his parent institution.

All appointments to the posts of Director General and Director (except those appointed on deputation through transfers) should be made through competitive and open processes through advertisements. However, 60% of the Director General posts and 75% of the Director posts should be reserved for internal candidates of the ACC who meet the advertised eligibility criteria, as stated in the thirty-fifth recommendation.

Additionally, at each level of Director General, Director, and Deputy Director, a maximum of 10% of the positions may be filled through deputation transfers. However, officers from the judiciary and law enforcement who come on deputation for the sake of investigation, prosecution, or trial will not be included in this calculation.

Immediate effective steps should be taken to form the permanent Prosecution Unit mentioned in the law. Initially, the partial implementation of the law may begin by appointing a certain number of permanent prosecutors (10% to 20%), and the law should be fully implemented within 5 to 10 years by gradually replacing the positions of contractual lawyers with permanent prosecutors by 10% to 20% each year, as stated in Section 33(1) of the ACC Act, 2004.

In addition, recommendations forty-one and forty-two state that the controversial Rule 54(2) of the Anti-Corruption Commission (Employee) Service Rules, 2008 should be repealed, and the ACC should create its own salary structure. The amount of salary payable under this salary structure should be at least double the national salary structure. Furthermore, it should be ensured that officers and employees engaged in investigation, secret inquiries, and related work receive adequate risk allowances beyond their salaries. In addition to regular annual salary increases, officers and employees of the ACC should be given financial incentives from the ACC's own funds under a specific policy for performance efficiency.

The ACC should form a high-powered task force with various investigation or intelligence agencies with the government's cooperation to quickly identify corrupt officers and employees. Identified corrupt individuals should be dismissed from service through departmental action and handed over for criminal trial. The internal anti-corruption committee of the ACC should be dissolved, and a separate internal discipline sub-division should be formed, among other reforms.

After the fall of Sheikh Hasina's government on August 5, an interim government took charge and formed a total of 11 reform commissions in two phases. In the first week of last October, commissions for reforms in the electoral system, police administration, judiciary, Anti-Corruption Commission, public administration, and the constitution were formed.