TIB report on EC formation one-sided: Information Minister

Hasan Mahmud, information and broadcasting minister of the country, said the Transparency International (TI) report, its Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) citing Bangladesh as the 13th most corrupt country in the world, released by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), is one-sided and politically motivated.

"The report publishes such findings when organisations like TIB become biased and publish reports based on inaccurate data used for political purposes." He was talking to reporters on these current issues at his ministry on Wednesday.

Regarding the report data released by the TIB concerning corruption, the information minister said it is nothing but a conventional report.

"TIB, a non-profit organisation, issued a statement on the Election Commission (EC) formation act. But the organisation fights corruption. The entire issue of the EC formation act is a completely political matter and its statement on this political issue proves TIB is used for political purposes," he said. 

"There was no difference between the TIB statement and the BNP statement concerning the EC formation act," he added.  

The minister said, "We think the existence of such an organisation is good but when their report contains incorrect data-information or is a run of the mill or [politically] motivated report, it tarnishes the image of the organisation."