Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) has firmly slammed the interim administration for sending an oversized team to the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly and said it is “the continuation of humiliating practice” of the autocratic regime that has been driven away after a popular revolt.
While more than 100 representatives are participating in the ongoing session in New York, TIB also wondered what purpose a massive delegation sent to such a forum serves, where efficiency and targeted diplomacy are usually preferred at the UN.
Reacting to this development, TIB’s Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said in a statement on Thursday: “It is indeed frustrating that a government which came into power through historic student and people-driven movements with pledges of transparency, accountability and improvement… would do the same things it promised to eliminate.”
“Under a fallen authoritarian regime, sending large delegations to UNGA and such other forums were derivative norms seeped into our political culture with two hundred plus members frequently being there,” said Dr Iftekharuzzaman. We had hoped that the interim government would be different. Sadly, this year’s choice echoes those past habits.”
The TIB states that the government’s credibility is damaged by not implementing its own decision to halt extravagant foreign trips at taxpayers’ expense. The watchdog added that even powerful countries like the US, Russia and China have never exceeded a hundred delegates – despite their much larger diplomatic clout. By comparison, countries with weaker governance routinely rationalise bloated delegations based on diplomatic requirements, though they appear to be state-sponsored “junkets.”
Dr Iftekharuzzaman remembered that in 2024, the interim government sent only 57 people to the UNGA, giving hope for a transcendent era of governance. We anticipated that this number would fall even further this year. Instead, we have the same waste of public funds and the same unsightly appearance before the world,” he said.
TIB posed several critical questions:
How were the delegation members selected?
How did national interests and agenda priorities shape the decision?
And will taxpayers receive some accountability for how their money was spent?
“These are not only technical questions,” Dr Iftekharuzzaman said. “They cut to the heart of whether this interim government is committed to reforming the state, or if it will run the same risks that created conditions for popular uprising.”
TIB said the decision is “embarrassing and disappointing” for a government that was given to reform and renewal. Unless convincing explanations and remedial steps are taken, the interim administration could see its reputation at home and abroad severely tarnished.