'Let the poor be freen of suffering'

The Daily Star, Asia News Network, Dhaka, Bangladesh

The government certainly reserves the right to monitor activities of non-government organizations (NGOs) to satisfy itself with the accountability standards being followed by them. After all, millions of donor dollars are channeled through them every year to a country and its government needs to know where and how such allocations got spent.

However, such an accountability mechanism has to be institutionalized and devoid of political overtone, slant or interference of any kind. Importantly, the government should itself be objective, accountable and transparent while trying to introduce accountability in the NGO affairs by way of keeping above political connotation of all sorts. This is what unfortunately appears missing in its decision to hold back funds in excess of taka 350 crore from five NGOs on the grounds of "utilization irregularities".

The NGO Affairs Bureau says that an investigation into the suspected irregularities is yet to be complete but it does not "have any political motive behind holding back their (NGOs) funds". The slow pace of its investigations -- already some 15 months have gone by -- raises a question-mark or two.

Why mark out certain NGOs for the treatment? The worried donors have twice been told in this regard that the government would act when the probe is over. When that happens remains, at this point in time, anybody's guess.

The fund blockage has in the meanwhile severely affected different projects of the select group of NGOs, forcing them to squeeze their programs on literacy, poverty alleviation, women empowerment and social capital development through technical support to small organizations.

The government must realize that the NGOs present the brighter face of the country abroad and have achieved phenomenal success in encouraging grassroots participation for an all-round development of the country. The fallout could be a loss of face in the international community and, worryingly still, the donors might think of redirecting resource to other least and underdeveloped countries.

Basically, the government risks loss of credibility in the donor community and could be seen as viewing the issue not from a developmental angle but with a politically jaundiced eye. The biggest loser in the deadlock are the poor and the marginalised sections of society for whose emancipation and empowerment the NGO programs are directed at.

Therefore, instead of impeding their activities on alleged grounds of irregularities, the government should release the funds and monitor their utilization by the NGOs.

Should it get any tangible evidence of any wrongful use of funds the government, of course, reserves the right to take action against it, as always. However, there is no point making them virtually dysfunctional on the basis of an assumption or anticipation of foul-play.