Public Administration Pulls Official Directory From Web

The Ministry of Public Administration has systematically removed the identification numbers, current designations, and posting records of civil service officials from its dedicated web repository, eliminating public access to real-time administrative status data. The database alteration on the official portal 'gems.gov.bd' was verified on Wednesday, 26 August 2026, executed without prior announcement or explanatory context.

The digital portal previously hosted an open public directory detailing the postings and employment statuses of over 6,000 BCS administration cadre officers, including those on contractual extensions and Officers on Special Duty (OSD). The directory has now been substituted with contact details of roughly 1,000 focal point officials designated across various ministries to manage institutional websites.

State Minister for Public Administration Abdul Bari stated that he was unaware of the technical change, committing to review the development. Senior System Analyst Muhammad Hafizur Rahman confirmed that the data extraction was executed under instructions from senior officials, though specific rationales were not communicated to technical personnel.

The move has drawn criticism from governance experts and civil society advocates. Former Secretary AKM Abdul Awal Majumdar noted, "This decision is fundamentally incorrect. It directly compromises institutional transparency in public administration, which is vital for maintaining good governance and public trust."

Ruhi Naz, Deputy Director of Research Initiatives, highlighted that withdrawing public administrative data contradicts state-led digital governance initiatives and violates the core tenets of the Right to Information (RTI) framework. She emphasized that arbitrarily scrubbing published records restricts civic monitoring and undermines institutional accountability.
//DBTech/TMZ/EMS//