DHAKA: Much-trumpeted initiatives taken one after another for citizens’ safety by Dhaka Metropolitan Police appear to have failed to bring any result for a lack of effective implementation, according to sources concerned.
 
Police officials observed that most of the initiatives have a premature death for lack of monitoring. They said that the subordinates of the department are not properly going by the directives of the Police Commissioner.
 
However, Police Commissioner A.K.M. Shahidul Haque was optimist about reintroducing all the programmes which were not implemented.

“All my initiatives were aimed at bringing back discipline and cleanliness in the city thoroughfares,” he said.  

A good number of initiatives like introduction of lane for the plying of vehicles, filling in tenants’ data, community policing, hawker eviction and open-house day at police stations all proved futile as they were not executed properly.  

Lanes disappear: On December 8, 2009, the Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner issued a notice for vehicles to follow lane on the capital’s roads and also go by traffic signals. However, the scene took on the past look again as the implementation of lanes lost gear halfway through.

The police Commissioner has now issued fresh directive reintroducing the route plan.

DMP Commissioner Shahidul Haque said the perennial traffic jam could not be tackled unless the number of vehicles is reduced.

Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) with the help of DMP on July 15 began an eviction drive for chasing out vehicles of over 20-25 years old.

The drive yielded some results initially, but the juggernauts remerged again as the traffic cops allegedly turned a blind eye to the predators.

Tenants’ data filling:  Following the arrest of Jamaatul  Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) kingpin Zahidul Islam Suman alias ‘Bomaru Mizan’ on May 14, a huge cache of arms and explosives were recovered from Jurain, prompting the police to issue a notice asking the house owners to get tenants’ information filled in forms.
 
Three forms have been sent to police stations in the capital for data collection in privately run student hostels, messes, families living as tenants and hired drivers.
 
The forms contain detailed information like the present and permanent addresses, national ID card number, telephone or cell numbers of tenants which are supposed to be deposited with the police stations.
 
The form also includes photographs, signature, fingerprints of the persons concerned, verification by third person with addresses and phone numbers and also the particulars of the landlords.
 
Not all the landlords did provide the data, police officials said. The house owners alleged that the police stations did not inform them about the matter. Neither any form nor any instruction was provided, alleged one house owner, Professor Safayet Choudhury, of North Dhanmondi.
 
DC Habibur Rahman of DMP (Headquarters) said the data collection is very important for which the Police Commissioner directed all the Deputy Commissioners of the city.
 
Community Police: The Police Commissioner has issued a notice to the DCs for formulating an organogram for community policing.

In the notice Shahidul Haque said the community policing is a modern and effective concept to control and prevent crimes, arrest and collect information of the criminals, prevent conjugal feuds and repression on women and children, child marriage, false cases, eve-teasing, dowry, drug addiction, and anti-social activities and for  impartial and fruitful solutions of the area-wise problems.
 
Many ruling-party leaders and workers became members of Community Policing service and were allegedly resorting to unlawful activities, turning the noble purpose upside down.

Eviction of hawkers: Haque issued another notice on April 3 to the DCs of the city asking them to clear the roads and footpaths by evicting the hawkers, which has evidently failed entirely as the order is yet to be executed.
 
Open-house day: DMP introduced ‘open-house day’ to take place once a month when local people of each area would visit the police stations and discuss the law-and-order situation with the cops.

Officer-in-Charge of Tejgaon police station Mahbubur Rahman said such day did not take place in the last three months.
 
The Police Commissioner, however, claimed successes of some of his initiatives, like prevention of eve-teasing.

He admitted that many initiatives were yet to see success and the police officials were working hard to make it happen.

BDST 1645 HRS, AUGUST 10, 2010.