‘He tarnished Wasa’s image’

Three employee associations of Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (Wasa) demanded immediate action against Wasa board Chairman Gholam Mostafa for what they claimed tarnished the image of the state-run agency.

In a letter sent to the local government ministry on May 11, Dhaka Wasa Sramik Union, Dhaka Wasa Engineers Association, and Dhaka Wasa Diploma Engineers Association said Mostafa tarnished Wasa's image through his remarks in a recent TV talk show.

According to the letter, the chairman said the Wasa board was virtually ineffective.

The board consisted of 13 members including Wasa Managing Director Taqsim A Khan, who has no voting rights. However, Taqsim never allowed any board meeting to happen in his absence, the chairman was quoted as saying.

According to the letter, the chairman said, "Everything is done bypassing the board. Dhaka Wasa is not functioning as per the Dhaka Wasa Act-1996. As a result, the board cannot enforce its authority."

Dhaka Wasa Sramik Union President Tasadduk Hossain and Engineers Association President Waz Uddin Wazed confirmed that they sent the letter to the ministry.

Abdur Rab Miah, president of Dhaka Wasa Diploma Engineers Association, declined to comment on the matter.

Contacted, Mostofa said, "None of the officials and employees of Wasa suffered damages due to my remarks. I believe no one from the agency filed the complaint against me on their own. They did it under pressure."

On October 30 last year, a section of the Wasa staff complained to the local government ministry against Mostafa, alleging that the chairman meddled in the daily and administrative affairs of Wasa.