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Four Years of 10th Parliament

Truly friendly

Sessions see no boycott, no debate

Rashidul Hasan
The Jatiya Party has helped end the culture of parliament boycott for the first time since 1991 but failed to play an effective role in holding the government accountable to the House due to its curious presence in both the treasury and the opposition benches.
The lawmakers of the main opposition party were present in the current parliament on all the 341 working days over the last four years.
However, almost all the 39 parliamentary standing committees on the same number of ministries did not hold meetings regularly though the Rules of Procedure of the Jatiya Sangsad stipulate that they sit at least once a month.
According to Section 248 of the Rules of Procedure, each standing committee was supposed to hold at least 45 meetings in the last four years to investigate or enquire into the activities of the ministries.
But the standing committees on the labour and employment, the science and ICT, and the textiles and jute ministries couldn't hold more than 15 meetings each during the period, shows data of the parliament secretariat.
Besides, the committees on the home and the LGRD ministries held 19 meetings, the ones on the disaster management, and the industries ministries 20 each, that on the posts and telecommunications, and the expatriates' welfare ministries 22 meetings each during the period.
However, the standing committee on the shipping ministry held 50 meetings - the highest -, the one on the primary and mass education ministry 42, that on the law, and the railways ministries 40 meetings each in the last four years.
Most of these committees failed to perform their responsibilities of overseeing the government's functions effectively, say political and parliamentary affairs experts.
Due to the presence of a friendly opposition party in the current 10th parliament, neither the treasury bench nor the main opposition criticises each other or holds debate on issues of public interest, they say.
Three lawmakers of the main opposition party were included in the council of ministers - a rare instance in any parliamentary democracy. Besides, JP Chairman HM Ershad was made a special envoy to the prime minister with the status of a minister.
"We often hear that the senior members of the treasury and the opposition benches praise each other for making parliament effective through cooperation and constructive criticism of the government," said Chittagong University professor and parliamentary affairs expert Nizam Ahmed.
On several occasions in parliament, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina lauded the
performance of the opposition bench and termed it an ideal opposition.
"In the absence of a real opposition party, lawmakers are losing interest in taking part in the parliamentary business. Quorum crisis has become com-
mon though 274 of the 350 lawmakers are from the ruling Awami League," he told this newspaper.
Against this backdrop, the current parliament, formed through the January 2014 election amid boycott by the BNP-led alliance, steps into five years today.
The main opposition MPs didn't cast votes against any of the 130 government bills in the last four years.
They only walked out of parliament twice - during the passage of Bank Company Amendment Act in the ongoing session, and in protest against raising the prices of gas and electricity.
Talking to The Daily Star, Opposition Leader Raushan Ershad said the present parliament is the most successful one due to the main opposition party's constructive criticism of the government and cooperation with
"In the present parliament, it is common that the treasury and the opposition benches jointly criticise the
BNP which has no representative in the House," said M Hafiz Uddin Khan, former adviser to a caretaker government.
In the country's history, this is the only parliament where the opposition MPs oppose a bill while participating in the discussions on it, but vote in favour of it during its passage in parliament, he said.
"People and the media have no interest in the current parliament due to the curious presence of the Jatiya Party in both the treasury and the opposition benches," he said.
Political analyst Tareq Shamshur Rahman, a professor at Jahangirnagar University, said the current parliament has gone into sessions regularly in line with the constitution. "But its effectiveness is still in question mainly due to the absence of a real opposition party."
Chief Whip ASM Feroz, however, said the present parliament is very lively as the main opposition is playing its due and effective role.