Surveillance Scandal Scrutiny: Interim Government Forms Probe Panel
The interim government has formed a committee to investigate the procurement and use of surveillance equipment in the country. The committee will be headed by the Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant for Post, Telecommunications, and ICT Affairs, Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb. It will examine how the equipment was acquired, from where it was purchased, the costs involved, and how it was used.
The announcement was made by the Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary, Shafiqul Alam, during a briefing at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital on Thursday, August 14, following a meeting of the Advisory Council.
Shafiqul Alam said, “During the previous government’s tenure, some claim the surveillance equipment was purchased for about 300 million dollars, while others say around 200 million dollars. The full report makes it clear — the previous authoritarian government used surveillance devices and spyware to deprive Bangladeshi citizens of their civil rights. This illegal surveillance took away our minimal freedom of speech and undermined the constitutional right to privacy. The Advisory Council meeting has decided to form a committee to investigate this matter — to determine exactly how much was spent, where the equipment came from, and although the report states much of it was purchased from Israel, this will be thoroughly examined. The head of this committee will be the Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant, Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb.”
The Press Secretary also reported that last week, it was stated that 121 recommendations from reform commissions were in the process of being implemented. Of these, 16 have already been implemented, 14 have been partially implemented, and the rest are ongoing. “Today’s meeting was informed that an additional 246 urgent reform recommendations have been received, bringing the total to 367. Out of these, 37 have already been implemented,” he said.
Among the recommendations, 82 relate to labor issues. The Labor Adviser informed the meeting that many of these are in the final stages of implementation. The Women’s Reform Commission has listed 71 recommendations for urgent implementation, along with 37 from the Local Government Reform Commission, 33 from the Health Sector Reform Commission, and 23 from the Media Reform Commission.
Shafiqul Alam added, “The Chief Adviser and other advisers emphasized strong follow-up on these matters. Progress will be updated in the next meeting, with a focus on ensuring the rapid implementation of the most urgent recommendations.”
He also noted that there is an ongoing investigation into the procurement of lethal weapons for the police. “Reports have been made on how these were purchased and how they were used, and this is also under scrutiny,” he said.
