The National Parliament of Bangladesh
Sushasoner Jonno Nagorik (Sujan) today placed two separate alternatives for forming a polls-time government in order to resolve the hurdles in holding a participatory parliamentary election under the existing provisions of the constitution.
According to the first alternative, the interim government can be formed with five elected members each of ruling 14-party alliance and opposition 18-party alliance, and a nonpartisan person, who will discharge functions of the prime minister.
The election-time government can also be formed with five elected members each of 14-party alliance and 18-party alliance, and five nonpartisan persons, and among them one can discharge functions of the prime minister, according the second alternative.
Badiul Alam Majumder, secretary of Sujan, a civil society platform working for good governance, disclosed the proposal while presenting a written statement at a press conference at Jatiya Press Club in the capital.
Citing the statement, he said a search committee can be formed with the retired chief justices to identify the elected and neutral persons as members of the election-period government, along with some conditions.
According a condition, he said the members of the election time government neither can contest the general elections nor conduct any election campaign.
But, the non-elected members will be made elected through a by-election for forming the election-time government, Badiul said.
He said the tenure of the interim government would be 90 days from October 27 in respect of both alternatives, and this government will provide all assistances to the Election Commission (EC) along with doing routine works.
Sujon secretary said other alternatives can be sorted out, but the most important thing is the goodwill of the two major political parties in solving the problems through holding dialogues.
However, he said both the political parties are stick to in their positions, and none is showing goodwill in this regard, although time is running up quickly.
If the heads of the two political parties cannot resolve the existing crisis, the whole nation has to pay extreme returns, he added.
Badiul urged the citizens of the country to become vocal to press the leaders of the political parties to respond their demands.
He said the EC has finalised a draft for changing the code of conduct, which will not be effective, since the commission could not show its goodwill in taking action against the incidents of violation of code of conducts in recently held city corporation elections.
Badiul demanded of the government punish the persons responsible for recording the phone conversation between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and circulating it to media.
Former advisers of caretaker government SM Shahjahan and M Hafiz Uddin Khan, columnist Syed Abul Moksud, Justice Kazi Ebadul Haque (retired), Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrullah Chowdhury and local government expert Prof Tofail Ahmed, also spoke.
Source: The Daily Star
