Graft-free services

Plagued by perennial problems, Dhaka and Chittagong -- our two major cities -- go to polls on April 28. What will a mayoral hopeful do to solve those problems if elected? How all the modern amenities will be ensured? What is his vision for the future of the city? Looking for the answers, The Daily Star has talked to a mayoral candidate. 

A corruption-free city corporation is Zonayed Saki's first priority.

“If elected, I will make all the details of transactions and budgetary allocations available to people for scrutiny. So that if there is any irregularity, the citizens will hold us accountable,” he told The Daily Star in a recent interview.

Use of modern technology would play a vital role in ensuring the accountability and reducing graft from the city corporation, he said.

Saki, chief coordinator of Ganasanghati Andolon, is a mayor candidate in the Dhaka North City Corporation polls. His electoral symbol is “telescope”.

The 42-year-old had joined politics in 1990 soon after completing his HSC.  He was also involved with the anti-autocracy movement against the HM Ershad-led regime.

After being associated with Dhaka University's student politics for several years, he became president of Chhatra Federation in 1998. Four years later, he was made the chief coordinator of Ganasanghati Andolon.

Saki believes it is possible to transform Dhaka into a modern city through a combined effort involving all -- citizens and authorities.

“A happy locality is formed when citizens' rights are ensured and they carry out their duties accordingly,” he said.

The citizens who are deprived of their rights are often indifferent towards performing their duties, he said, adding that the issue could only be resolved through upholding what he called citizens' dignity.

“All the civic amenities would have to be ensured. Only then, the citizens would actively participate in the effort to build a Dhaka we are dreaming of,” he added.

Saki said if elected, he would work to make Dhaka “friendlier” towards women by ensuring their safety.

In terms of civic amenities, Dhaka could be easily termed an “unfriendly city” for women even though thousands of women are working here and contributing to the economy, he said.

“There are no public toilets, proper transport facilities and above all, security for women and children.”

Although Dhaka is the heart of the country's economy, its per capita production is not enough due infrastructural limitations, according to the mayor aspirant.

Traffic jam has slowed down the pace of citizens' lives. The lack of availability of modern technology is also affecting the per capita production.

He said a separate cycle lane would be built on each street as cycling could help reduce traffic congestion and environment pollution as it is a “healthy way of moving within the city”.

Stopping environmental pollution would be at the centre of Saki's policies and development schemes for the capital.

“Due to the ongoing exploitation of nature, the city is set to face environmental catastrophes. Water bodies and open spaces are disappearing quickly … rivers and air are being polluted mercilessly every day,” he said.

He said if elected, he would force the factory owners not to dump industrial waste into the rivers surrounding Dhaka within the next year.

Although slum dwellers pay a high rent to stay in their shanties, they are deprived of all the civic amenities, including sanitation, safe water and electricity.

Saki also promised that all the slums would be brought under the city corporation, if elected.

Asked why he decided to run for mayor, he said, “People, especially the youth, are tired of seeing state power being used as a way of amassing wealth. The youth have the ability to imagine change.”

Talking about the transparency in the polls, he said the environment required for free and fair city corporation elections was absent. 

“The Election Commission is not using its constitutional power to stop the mayor aspirants who are violating the electoral code of conduct. We are not sure whether it would use law enforcers to ensure transparency during voting,” he said.