Bringing Wasa, Rajuk under City Corporations

Policymakers would do well to pay heed to the call of the DNCC mayor to bring Rajuk and Wasa under the jurisdiction of the city corporations in order to tackle the city's worsening waterlogging problem. The mayor's demand has strong rationale as the city corporations have no control over departments such as Wasa, Rajuk, Police and other service providers in the capital. 

The current state defies both logic and common sense. Reportedly, a total of 18 ministries and 56 departments are responsible for providing services and carrying out development activities in the city. How can the city corporations get the job done unless they have the resources and the administrative authority to do so? 

Since taking office, both the mayors have been making serious efforts to deliver on their election promises, a rarity in our culture, from cleaning up the city in a record time after Eid al-Adha to freeing up roads from illegal parking, reaffirming the fact that if there is a will, there is a way. 

To fulfill the mandate and to be effective the government must revisit the current task-to-resource state of the city corporations. Under the current arrangement there is much wastage of resources due to lack of coordination among so many departments and agencies. Thus the matter brings up the core issue of city government, an issue that has been pushed under the carpet. 

If Dhaka has to be made livable again, there is no alternative to a city government. If there is reservation among some policymakers about this, then appropriate legislations can be made to address these matters. Till that happens, the mayor's suggestion regarding Wasa is worth considering.