THE recently promulgated Public Accounts Audit Ordinance 2025 has drawn criticism, with Transparency International Bangladesh warning that the ordinance significantly undermines the independence of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General. The ordinance, approved by the advisory council on April 17 and promulgated on May 4, vests an extensive control over the office in the hands of the executive, covering rule-making authority, organisational structuring, recruitment and departmental re-organisation. The changes not only violate the constitutional safeguard stipulated in Article 128(4), which mandates the office鈥檚 functional autonomy but also risks turning a constitutionally independent institution into a subordinate arm of the executive. Transparency International Bangladesh in a statement labelled the ordinance both unconstitutional and conducive to corruption. It also notes that it disregards the submissions made by civil society actors. Proposals to empower the office to audit revenue assessment, hold officials accountable and exercise independent rule-making powers were entirely overlooked. Moreover, the Finance Division is reported to have removed the clause on auditing revenue assessment, an essential check on rampant irregularities in tax collection. The disregard for stakeholder feedback and constitutional principles concerns the intent and implications of the ordinance.
The wider consequences of the ordinance, if left unaddressed, may extend far beyond administrative restructuring. The ordinance could shield irregularities in revenue administration instead of exposing them. By placing critical audit functions under the executive oversight, the ordinance weakens the structural separation needed to ensure that audits remain impartial and instances of tax evasion and collusive corruption are properly identified and acted on. The governance context 鈥� marked by endemic tax fraud, weak enforcement and compromised regulatory mechanisms 鈥� makes such a move dangerous. It creates the conditions for an accountability vacuum in public finance, eroding public confidence and enabling systemic malpractice to continue unchecked. The concern that the ordinance effectively removes significant areas of public revenue from the purview of independent audit is, therefore, grounded in the realities of institutional vulnerability. The absence of independent scrutiny over revenue streams could reduce the deterrent effect that the audit office is supposed to exert. At a time when fiscal transparency is already strained, weakening the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General could further isolate oversight institutions and reinforce impunity in financial governance.
The government should, therefore, review the ordinance. The ordinance should restore full audit autonomy, especially over revenue, to the office to safeguard public financial accountability. A transparent law is essential to uphold accountability and stop executive overreach, ensuring the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General remains an effective check against corruption and fiscal mismanagement.
