A national daily on Thursday reported that Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Annisul Huq wants RAJUK and WASA under the jurisdiction of the City Corporations to get rid of the city’s myriad of problems such as water logging, sub optimal level of water and gas supply, unauthorized vehicles plying, parking, illegal road constructions, noise pollution etc. Whenever the city goes under rainwater and faces other visible problems caused miseries for the city dwellers, the blame game begins and it goes to the shoulder of the City Corporations. Only for keeping away from blame game, such type of wish for taking two statutory bodies – RAJUK and WASA under City Corporations is not realistic and only proper coordination with these bodies may solve the problems concerning policy-dilemma of Dhaka city development.
The development of Dhaka City has been put on the back burner because of policy-related impasse in providing the city dwellers with quality service as DNCC Mayor stated that they have no control over more than four dozens organizations providing services in the capital. But experts said that DCC’s demand to control over statutory bodies is not the solution; but it is mandatory to identify the other causes like poor city management and coordination, low efficiency, and pervasive corruption are exacerbating the problems of Dhaka city.
We see no leadership in the City Corporations. A City Corporation cannot be expected to be a government with power over all the agencies of the government. The City Mayors have to show leadership to oversee and ensure that all the government agencies provide services. No City Mayor can expect to be the head of all government agencies.
Seeking more and more power is easy. Let the City Corporations prove how responsibly they can discharge their duties. Power itself does not make anybody competent.
