The income and assets of the candidates participated in the upazila elections and their dependents as well saw a staggering increase in the past five years, said the Transparency International Bangladesh.
The TIB analysis also showed that those who held posts in the immediate past upazila parishad and ran for re-election for the next term particularly exhibited substantial growth in both income at 114.02 per cent on average and movable assets at 193.12 per cent on average.
The candidates’ income soared by up to 31,900 per cent in these five years, while the assets of their spouses and dependents surged by a maximum of 12,400 per cent and the movable assets of a chairmen candidate increased by up to 11,666 per cent.
Among the elected chairmen in the polls, income of one chairman increased by 10,866.67 per cent, while immovable assets of another rose by 23,937.65 per cent.
The TIB on Sunday revealed the information in a report that presented an analysis of the affidavits the candidates submitted to the Election Commission for the sixth upazila parishad election.
The organisation also noted that both the income and movable assets of many candidates of the upazila parishad elections increased more than the candidates of the January 7 parliamentary elections.
The movable assets of a chairman candidate increased up to by 11,666 per cent, whereas a lawmaker candidate’s movable assets increased up to by 3,065 per cent, it said.
The income of a female vice-chairman candidate increased up to by 31,900 per cent against a lawmaker candidate’s income increase up to by 2,238 per cent.
About the abnormal rise in income and wealth, the corruption watchdog observed that similar to the national level, public interest was severely ignored at the recent local-level election.
Many candidates in the election seemed focused solely on amassing wealth through the abuse of power rather than prioritising public welfare.
The trend poses a significant risk to the future of good governance, democracy and anti-corruption efforts in the country, it said.
This trend signals a troubling pattern of rapid wealth accumulation during their tenure.
According to the TIB report, the annual income of 251 candidates increased by 100 per cent or more, while the income of 360 candidates increased by 50 per cent or more in the past five years.
Among top ten candidates in terms of increasing income, the annual income of Mossamat Firoza Khatun from Sherpur in Bogura, a candidate for the woman vice-chairman position, increased by 31,900 per cent from Tk 2,000 in 2019 to Tk 6.40 lakh in 2024. Firoza Khatun was vice-chairman of the upazila in the immediate past term from 2019 to 2024.
The annual income of Sonali Khatun, another woman vice-chairman candidate from Daulatpur in Kushtia who was in the same office in the last term, rose by 10,900 per cent. The annual income of Abdur Rashid, vice-chairman of Thakurgaon sadar upazila in the last term who ran for re-election, saw an increase by 10,866 per cent. Chairman candidate Nurul Alam of Teknaf upazila in Cox’s Bazar, who also ran for re-election, saw his income rise by 10,422 per cent. Woman vice chairman candidate Momtaj Aktar from Baghmara upazila in Rajshahi saw the lowest increase by 3,140 per cent in her annual income among the list of top ten candidates. Momtaz Aktar also ran for re-election for the post.
In terms of increase in the moveable assets, 333 candidates saw their moveable assets to have increased by 100 per cent or more in the past five years. Among the top ten candidates in this category, chairman candidate Khan Arifur Rahman of Jhalakathi sadar upazila had his moveable assets increased by 11,666 per cent from Tk 15 lakh in 2019 to Tk17.53 crore in 2024. Khan Arifur Rahman was upazila chairman in the immediate past term and ran for re-election.
The movable assets of another chairman candidate, Mahmudul Hasan of Delduar upazila in Tangail who was its chairman in the immediate past term of 2019–24, saw 9,850 per cent increase. Woman vice-chairman candidate at Tarail upazila in Kishoreganj Nargis Sultana, who ran for re-election for the post, had her moveable assets increased by 6,563 per cent. Ainun Nahar Begum of Daulatkhan upazila in Bhola who also ran for re-election in woman vice-chairman post saw the lowest increase in her moveable assets among the top ten at 2,939 per cent.
In terms of movable assets of the dependants of the candidates, the wealth increased manifold in the past five years. The moveable assets of the wife and dependents of Md Farid Hasan who was the chairman of Pangsa upazila in Rajbari in 2019–24 and ran for re-election, increased by 12,400 per cent during this period.
The report also said that businesspersons continued to dominate the list of candidates in the upazila parishad elections.
Of the candidates vying for the chairman post, 69 per cent are business people, while 68.16 per cent of the vice-chairman candidates listed business as their profession.
The second highest mentioned occupation is agriculture at 11.91 per cent among chairman candidates, and 15.99 per cent among vice-chairman candidates.
At least 5.69 per cent were lawyers and 4.445 per cent were teachers among chairman candidates, while 4.25 per cent were jobholders and 3.82 per cent were teachers among the vice-chairman candidates. Â
Among chairman candidates 1.98 per cent was politicians, which was 0.67 per cent among vice-chairman candidates.
At least 50.96 per cent of the woman vice-chairman candidates said that they are homemakers, while 28.16 per cent said that they are businesswomen and 3.11 per cent said they were politicians.
The affidavit analysis further revealed the number of candidates with movable assets worth at least Tk 1 crore almost tripled over the past five years that was 390 in 2014 and 139 in 2019.
Additionally, 25 candidates owned land exceeding legal limits, totalling 874 acres, including seven elected candidates in the polls.
Among them, the maximum land of 280 acres was owned by chairman candidate Dewan Ashid Raja Chowdhury in dowarabazar upazila in Sunamganj against legal limit 33 acres, the report said.
A total of 35.95 per cent of the total candidates were currently accused or earlier accused in various cases, including corruption.
Of them, the maximum 27 cases were currently faced by SAM Siddique, a chairman candidate from Kalihati of Tangail.
The TIB also found mismatches between affidavits and income tax returns of 84 per cent candidates in the polls.
A total of 5,472 candidates, mostly from the ruling Awami League, took part in the polls, while the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party boycotted the election, but their 131 candidates participated ignoring party decision.
TIB executive director Iftekharuzzaman said, ‘While public interest should be the focus, a troubling competition driven by power abuse is emerging under the guise of public representation.’
‘Being in power offers endless opportunities to amass wealth without accountability. Public representative positions are becoming licences to enrich oneself through direct, indirect, and collusive power abuse,’ he said.
He also noted troubling parallels between Upazila and National Parliamentary Elections, citing issues like illegal land ownership and discrepancies in candidates’ financial disclosures.
Iftekharuzzaman urged institutions like the Election Commission, Anti Corruption Commission, and National Board of Revenue to investigate promptly, stressing the importance of accountability and corruption control.
He also expressed concern over the lack of visible action signalling growing governance challenges and corruption threats to democracy.