Faizul Latif Chowdhury

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Faizul Latif Chowdhury
London School of Economics and Political Science
Deakin University
SubjectEconomics, political science, revenue administration, liyerature
Notable worksCorruption in Bureaucracy

Faizul Latif Chowdhury (

Independent University Bangladesh
as adjunct professor business.

Education and training

Chowdhury studied science at the high school and pre-university college in

London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). At the LSE, Professor Keith Dowding was his dissertation supervisor.[2]
At different times he received training on information technology

Career

Chowdhury's professional career started in free-lance journalism in the

Rupali Bank as a senior officer.[3]

Towards the end of 1983, he joined the Bangladesh Civil Service as a fast-track career civil servant. He worked at the National Board of Revenue and its attached offices for a long time in different capacities (1983–2000) until he was appointed as a deputy secretary to the Government of Bangladesh in 2001. He was promoted as joint secretary to the government in 2005.

Meanwhile, he also worked as a national consultant in two projects, one funded by the

Independent University Bangladesh
.

Chowdhury involved himself with many publications and publishing houses. He engineered establishment of two publishing houses, namely Adhuna Prokashony and Desh Prokashan. He played a vital role in the publication of a monthly literary magazine titled Dwitiyo Chinta (tr. Second Thought), published from Mymensingh town and edited by Iffat Ara since 1985. He also conceived and organized publication of monthly Adhuna (1985–1987), a top-rate literary magazine edited by poet Shamsur Rahman. He worked as the Literary editor of the daily Banglabazaar Patrika for a brief period (1992–93).[4]

Literary works

Poet Jibanananda Das

Chowdhury has worked extensively on life and works of Bengal's most popular modern poet Jibanananda Das. He has published a number of titles on his poetry. He has translated a number of Jibanananda poems into English, reviewed a number of poems, and written articles on the literary works and style of the poet. He has collected and published all the non-fictional prose works of poet Jibanananda Das. He considers Jibanananda Das as a poet with all signs of post-modern poetry.[5] His latest work on the poet, titled Essays on Jibanananda Das was published in 2009. In 2015 he collected and published 101 letters of poet Jibanananda Das in a volume.[6]

Translation

Chowdhury has translated a number of major

Booker awardee Arundhati Roy
of India, among others.

Economic works

Chowdhury has dealt several aspects of applied economics. His works include revenue administration, economics of tax evasion, design of value added tax, economics of smuggling, rent-seeking by public servants, economics of corruption, tax administration and tax evasion, tax farming and making of budgetary policy, among others.

Economics of customs evasion

Since 1973, a huge volume of works has been produced on the economics of

indirect taxes, have been neglected. Chowdhury, in 1992, produced an economic model of evasion of customs duty which is the pre-dominant form of tax in low income countries around the world. This model is built upon the economics of crime model developed by Nobel Laureate economist Gary Becker.[7] Chowdhury has explained that, when an opportunity exists, the level of customs evasion depends on two important factors, namely, probability of detection and level of statutory penalty. He expanded the model by factoring in bribe which leads to accountability conspiracy
and, consequently, detection is not reported to the authority.

Production-substituting smuggling

Research on

VAT and other consumption taxes. Reduction of domestic taxes enables the local producer to supply at a lower cost and bring down the price disparity that encourages smuggling. However, Chowdhury suggested that there is a limit beyond which reducing domestic taxes on production cannot be feasible for adding competitive advantage vis-à-vis smuggled cigarettes. Therefore, government needs to upscale its anti-smuggling drive so that seizures can add to the cost of smuggling and render smuggling uncompetitive thereby. Notably, Chowdhury modelled the case of the smuggler vis-a-vis the local producer as one of antagonistic duopoly

Rent seeking bureaucracy

public goods is pushed up by the rent-seeking nature of public servants of all levels.[9] It is rent
or bribe that adds to the cost of production.

Market in corruption

In explaining economics of corruption, Chowdhury[10] theorized that a market in corruption exists in public bureaucracy. The level of corruption is determined by the demand and supply forces as apply to other commodities and services. In the public offices, corruption is demanded by the clients (e.g. a tax-payer) and it is the civil servants who supply it (e.g. a tax collector). Chowdhury suggested that corruption could be controlled if direct and physical interaction between the civil servants and their clients could be removed whereby the market in corruption would be rendered inoperative. Human interface in the public office could be avoided through automation, computerization and inter-active web-technology. In absence of human interface, scope for negotiation for a corrupt deal and payment of kick-back would be naturally removed resulting in lowering of the level of corruption.

Publications

Literary

(a) Jibanananda Daser "Aat Bochor Ager Ek Deen (literary criticism)(ed.), 1994: Dibya Prokash, Dhaka.
(b) Jibanananda Daser "Godhuli Sandhir Nritya" (literary criticism)(ed.), 1995: Dibya Prokash, Dhaka.
(c) Jibanananda Daser "Mrityur Aage" (literary criticism)(ed.), 2000: Dibya Prokash, Dhaka.
(d) Oprakashito Jibanananda 51 (Poetry anthology) (ed.), 2000 : Mawla Brothers, Dhaka
(e) Amiyo Chakrabartyr Sreshtha Prabandha (Anthology of Essays) (ed.). 1998: Mawla Brothers, Dhaka
(f) Jibanananda Daser Prabandha Samagra (Anthology of Essays) (ed.), 2000: 2nd edition, Mawla Brothers, Dhaka.
(g) Stories of Nadine Gordimer (translated)(ed. with Introduction), 1992: Dibya Prokash, Dhaka.
(h) Oliver Friggeirie's Koranta and Other Short Stories from Malta (translated) (ed), Desh Prokason, 1998: Dhaka.
(i) Chotoder, Boroder (Collection of Bengali rhymes) (ed.), 1990: Shilpataru, Dhaka.
(j) Shilpa Shahitye Nagnata Jounata Oshlilata (Anthology of Essays with Introduction)(ed.), 2000 : Dibya Prokash, Dhaka
(k) Arundhati Roy's "Avilash Talkies" (Translated with Introduction), 1999: Dibya Prokash, Dhaka
(l) Jibanananda Daser Agranthitha Prabandhabali (Anthology of uncompiled essays by poet Jibanananda das) (ed.), 2000: Mawla Brothers, Dhaka.
(m) Prasanga : Jibanananda (Literary essays on poet Jibanananda Das), 2000: Somoy Prokashon, Dhaka.
(n) Bengali Essays of Nirad C. Chowdhury (Anthology of Essays with Introduction)(ed.), 2000 : Somoy Prokashon, Dhaka.
(o) Jibanananda Bibechona (Anthology of essays on poet Jibanananda Das with Introduction)(ed.), 1999: Anya Prokash, Dhaka.
(p) Jibanananda – Tulonay, Shomporkey (Anthology of comparative essays on poet Jibanananda Das with Introduction)(ed.), 2000 : Somoy Prokashon, Dhaka.
(q) Poems from Jibanananda Das (ed. Tr.), 1995: Creative Workshop, Chittagong.
(r) Homosexual References in Bengali Literature, 1999: Jijnasa, Calcutta.
(s) Voice of Hayat Saif, (ed. Tr.), 1999: Desh Prokashan, Dhaka
(t) Beyond Land and Time, 2007, Pathak Samabesh, Dhaka.
(u) Essays on Jibanananda Das, 2009, Pathak Samabesh, Dhaka.

Social science

  • Chowdhury, F. L. (1992) Evasion of Customs Duty in Bangladesh, unpublished MBA dissertation submitted to Monash University, Australia
  • Chowdhury, F. L. (1994) 'An Estimate of under-invoicing in relation to Bangladesh's import from seven Asian partner countries', Fiscal Frontier, Dhaka
  • Chowdhury, F. L. (1995) 'Need for upgrading fiscal reforms for small and medium enterprises in Bangladesh', Keynote paper presented in a seminar organized by
    Dhaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry (DCCI)
    , Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Chowdhury, F. L. (1999) A production-substitution model of Smuggling, Keynote paper presented in a seminar organized by the National Board of Revenue, Dhaka, Bangladesh
  • Chowdhury, F. L. (2006) Corrupt bureaucracy and privatization of Customs in Bangladesh, Pathok Samabesh, Dhaka.

References

  1. ^ Administrator, Super. "Director General". bangladeshmuseum.gov.bd.
  2. ^ Lekhak Ovidhan, Bangla Academy, 1999, Dhaka.
  3. ^ Faizul Latif Chowdhury in Asian Age
  4. ^ Faizul Latif Chowdhury in Asian Age
  5. OCLC 49932069
    .
  6. ^ Books of Faizul Latif Chowdhury
  7. ^ Becker, G. S. 'Crime and Punishment: An economic Approach', Journal of Political Economy, Vol.76, p.169-217, 1968
  8. ^ Bhagwati, Jagdish N and Hansen, B. 'A Theoretical Analysis of Smuggling',Quarterly Journal of Economics, 87, 2, May 1973, pp. 172–87.
  9. ISSN 2065-2194
    .
  10. ^ Chowdhury, F. L. Markets in Corruption, Mimeograph : 1992, Monash University
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