Maungdaw: Corruption travels among officials from the bottom to the top of the chain of command in western Burma's Maungdaw Township because government salaries are insufficient for survival, said a retired officer from the immigration department.

"In Maungdaw Township, all government servants are involved in corruption because they are unable to maintain their families' survival on government salaries," he said.

U Hla Win, Chairman of Maungdaw District, is being interrogated by high officials after he collected 150,000 Kyat from each village tract chairman in his district. He claimed the money would be used for the district office fund.

According to local official sources, U Hla Win went to Naypyidaw recently to explain before senior military officials, but he is expected to be dismissed from his position.

Another senior official from the taxation department is also now under a "Department Inquiry", as he sold government tax stamps to local businessmen at an inflated price.

"His name is Man Pound, the In-Charge of the taxation department, and he is now being interrogated by higher authorities because he was selling government stamps to businessmen at double the price of the government determined rated," the retired official said.

He added, "It is not only those two officials but also other officials, including doctors, teachers, and custom officials, that are involved in corruption."

A trader in Maungdaw said that an average person needs at least 7,000 Kyat to obtain a testimonial from a doctor in order to be admitted to the general hospital in Maungdaw. If someone is sick and unable to pay that amount, it will be impossible for him get admitted to the hospital for treatment.

The Maungdaw government hospital does not allow anyone to be hospitalized without a doctor's medical testimony.

At government schools of all levels in Maungdaw Township, teachers collect between 5,000 to 10,000 Kyat in additional "entrance fees" from individual students. The teachers keep this money.

A female trader who carries goods between Maungdaw and Teknaf in Bangladesh said that there are five official organizations on the Maungdaw border gate that collect money from traders crossing into Bangladesh.

The five organizations mentioned are: Customs, Nasaka, the jetty authority, Sarafa, and a combined force made up of the district authority, township authority, and the police.

Many police constables and riot police are involved in unlawful activities in Maungdaw, and some police officials are known by residents to be involved in drug smuggling to Bangladesh.

According to a local source, in Maungdaw Township the price of rice is double of that in other areas of Arakan State. A 50 kilogram sack of Pawsan Mwe brand rice is 35,000 Kyats, while other regular standard rice brands are nearly 30,000 Kyat per sack. A bag of rice is now equivalent to an ordinary government employee's monthly salary.