However, Abdus Saboor Mandal, Additional Secretary of the APD (Appointment, Promotion and Deputation) Division in the Ministry of Public Administration, argues that these promotions are not specifically related to the upcoming election; They are considered regular promotions. According to him, these promotions have been given after a long time.
In response to a question as to why so many promotions were given when there were no vacancies, this official told Prothom Alo that the promotions have been given against existing vacancies and the number of promotions given is less than what is actually required. While many people calculate based on the number of positions originally established, they often overlook the fact that many new positions have been created. In addition, persons engaged in various projects on deputation, lien or study leave are not taken into account.
This correspondent spoke to the additional secretary of the department, Abdus Sabur Mandal, on Tuesday night. It was then learned that he was appointed to the post of Secretary in the Ministry of Science and Technology on the same Tuesday.
According to sources in the Ministry of Public Administration, a group of officers may get promoted from the rank of Senior Assistant Secretary to Deputy Secretary in the first week of next month. At present, there are around 1,000 regular Deputy Secretary posts. However, the Ministry of Public Administration claims that there are around 1,750 Deputy Secretaries or equivalent posts across the country. At present, 1,698 persons are working on these posts. With upcoming promotions, many Deputy Secretaries may find themselves serving at the rank of Senior Assistant Secretary.
Badiul Alam Mazumdar, secretary of Shushashonor Jonno Nagoric (Shujan), said that the government is currently heavily dependent on administration. They believe that these massive promotions, even in the absence of relevant posts, are being given to please the public administration officials. Similar promotions happened before the Parliament elections in 2014 and 2018 and it seems to be happening this time too.
*The report was originally published in the print edition of Prothom Elo and has been rewritten for the English version by Farzana Liaquat.