Revitalising integrity: reforming the anti-corruption commission in Bangladesh

Despite a prominent political philosopher ruling out the possibility of detecting corruption, it is essential to identify and address corruption in every sector, office and level of government for a notion of progress. Corruption directly threatens good governance by undermining transparency, equity and accountability, which are crucial for a pro-people government (Gochhayat, 2010). Additionally, corruption weakens public administration by making state machinery inefficient, misusing resources, reducing public value and weakening public trust in the government (Graycar, 2020). The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) was founded in 2004 to curb widespread corruption in Bangladesh. Although the ACC was praised for its vital interventions in the initial years, the commission gradually became politically biased and broken. Eventually, the commission’s role and functions faded and reached a standstill in its core objectives. The existing interim government of Bangladesh has constituted a reform commission to recommend reform measures to revive the ACC, and this section endeavours to support the commission with some contributions. This section of this research work identifies key priorities, objectives, and strategic actions to combat corruption. It also outlines critical outcomes of the proposed actions and enablers to achieve the strategic actions. With primary qualitative data collected from different stakeholders and citizens, the recommendations below are proposed to assist the commission.