The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Education and Commerce Adviser Hossain Zillur Rahman yesterday denied lack of confidence between the government and BNP although government appeals against Tarique Rahman bail orders.

He was speaking after a seminar on "Citizen Charter: What, Why and How", and said that the government is going ahead for Khaleda Zia and Tarique Rahman release by considering political, legal and humanitarian factors.

"We had not changed our attitude in this regard. The government appeal against the Tarique's bail orders is a part of legal procedure," Commerce Adviser Hossain Zillur said.

Political parties would have shown their more responsibility to make a reasonable political environment in the country, he further said.

While addressing as chief guest at yesterday seminar, jointly organised by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) and Manusher Jonno, the Education Adviser said that there were many challenges ahead to proper implementation of citizens' charters.

He added that bureaucrats and citizens both have important roles to play in making this initiative a success.

"We can got fruit from the citizen charter if we would not have changed our mind set-up," Zillur said adding, " The government institutions as well as private sector would have improved their service quality in making the citizen charter a success."

TIB Trustee Board Member and Former Caretaker Government Adviser Sultana Kamal presided over the seminar.

Sultana Kamal said that a citizens' charter is the expression of understanding between citizens and public service providers.

The former adviser called for creating awareness among the citizen about the charter and said, "Citizen right would be ensured if the institutions worked in transparency and accountability."

She said that it would have needed publicity about the citizen charter through the mass media and other instrument to aware people.

TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman in his welcome speech said the government would take active measures to endorse it in every public service organisation.

Shahin Anam, Executive Director of Manusher Jonno moderated the seminar while Arif H Khan, Programme Officer of Manusher Jonno presented the keynote paper of the seminar and identifying most citizens' charters of public sector organisations as 'incomplete'.

He pointed out that the government has failed to present institution based citizen charter in public sector.

He called for take assistant from civil society organisations and community based organisations to get full fruit of citizen charter.

Establishment Secretary Md Abdus Salam Khan said a lot of government employees do not consider themselves as 'people's servants'.

Citing improvements in service quality in government agencies for passports, pensions, the land office and Chittagong port services, the secretary said other government organisations would also follow their lead in future.

Prof Salauddin Aminuzzaman of Department of Public Administration of Dhaka University said that the entire citizen don't about the charter.

"The government should take effective measure about the charter," he said.

Hasainul Hoq Inu of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal, Aminul Islam, Deputy Secretary of Primary and Mass Education Ministry, Sarker Abul kalam, Joint Secretary of Textiles Ministry, among other, addressed in the seminar.