CCC officials to visit Sweden on contractor’s expense to learn road roller operation
Photo: Agamir Somoy
Five officials from the Ministry of Local Government and the Chattogram City Corporation are set to travel to Sweden at a contractor’s expense to receive training on operating and maintaining road rollers. The information was disclosed in a government approval for foreign travel issued by the Ministry of Local Government on July 6. According to the order, the officials are scheduled to visit Sweden from July 25 to Aug. 3. The road rollers were added to the Chattogram City Corporation’s inventory on March 11. Questions have been raised over the foreign trip, which comes four months after the equipment was delivered.
One official whose name appears on the travel list denied that the trip would take place. Although the official denied it, no order suspending the trip has been found on the ministry’s website, even 16 days after the approval was issued. However, several City Corporation officials confirmed that because the government has discouraged foreign travel by officials, the entire file processing for the trip has been kept confidential so it would not become public before departure. They said that although the officials may not travel to Sweden during this period because of the rushed schedule, preparations for the trip have been finalized for a later date. Meanwhile, representatives of civil society described the trip as nothing more than a pleasure tour. Earlier, the prime minister canceled a City Corporation trip to the United States that was to be funded by a contractor for training on mosquito control.
The travel list includes Mohammad Moniruzzaman, private secretary to the minister of local government, Ashraful Amin, secretary of the Chattogram City Corporation, Superintendent Engineer Jasim Uddin, Executive Engineer Ashikul Islam, and Executive Engineer with additional charge Muhammad Imran Hossain Khoka.
According to the contract between the contractor and the City Corporation, contractor M/S Sarkar Kabir Ahmed was awarded a work order worth Tk 78.8 million to supply five double drum road rollers. Under the contract, three technical personnel were required to conduct a pre shipment inspection before the rollers were loaded onto a ship abroad. In addition, within seven days of delivery, one sub assistant engineer and one operator for each roller were to receive one day of training at the workplace in Chattogram. A total of Tk 1.315 million was allocated for the training, which was to be paid by M/S Sarkar Kabir Ahmed.
The Ministry of Local Government initially approved the foreign trip for road roller operation and maintenance training on Oct. 27, 2025. Later, the approval was suspended after the interim government halted foreign travel by government officials. That order included four officials from the Chattogram City Corporation and Deputy Secretary Abdur Rahman from the Ministry of Local Government. In the travel approval order signed on July 6 by Deputy Secretary, now Joint Secretary, Robiul Islam, Abdur Rahman’s name was removed and replaced by Mohammad Moniruzzaman, private secretary to the minister. In addition, the previous order allowed for a seven day trip. The July 6 order replaced the earlier approval and extended the duration of the visit to 10 days.
A former City Corporation official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “The operators will drive the rollers and the mechanics will repair them. They should be the ones receiving the training. What work do the officials have there? In reality, these trips are included in government procurement as pleasure tours. We also used to include officials because they requested it.”
Asked about the matter, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Chattogram City Corporation Mohammad Ashraful Amin said, “I have no intention of going on this trip. There is no plan either. Earlier, the trip had been suspended. Now many are traveling, such as officials from WASA, LGED, and the Bangladesh Water Development Board. That may be why the suspension was withdrawn and the travel approval was issued again.”
Chattogram City Corporation Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hossain said, “No one informed me about this matter. I will look into it and take action.”
Legal experts said that officials accepting hospitality from a contractor is not only ethically wrong but also constitutes a criminal offense under several existing laws. Under Section 64 of the Public Procurement Act, 2006, neither government officials nor contractors may offer or receive unethical benefits during public procurement or contract implementation. Accepting hospitality from a contractor constitutes ‘misconduct and corruption’ under the Government Servants Discipline and Appeal Rules, 2018. In addition, under Section 161 of the Penal Code, 1860, and Section 5(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, officials who abuse their authority to receive benefits from a contractor beyond lawful remuneration or violate procurement rules may face up to three years in prison. At the same time, under the Public Procurement Rules, the contractor’s work order may be canceled and the company may be blacklisted.
Advocate Akhtar Kabir Chowdhury, president of the Chattogram chapter of the Conscious Citizens Committee, TIB, said, “At a time when there is a government directive to stop unnecessary foreign travel, it is extremely ridiculous for secretaries and private secretaries to travel to Sweden to learn how to operate road rollers. Are they going to drive the rollers after returning home? A luxury trip funded by the contractor means the contractor will later recover that money by compromising the quality of the work. That is clearly a waste of public money and criminal conduct.”
