Passport Issuance: JS body for home wants to see process in 9 countries

The parliamentary body on the home affairs ministry wants to visit different foreign missions of Bangladesh to inspect passport and visa issuance activities in order to get a comprehensive idea on how to make them more dynamic and effective.

Following the committee's recommendation, the ministry has been planning to arrange visits for the standing committee members in nine countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom.

There are activities of different agencies under the home affairs ministry in those foreign missions of Bangladesh.

This visit is likely to take place following the Covid-19 situation becoming normal, sources at the parliamentary body said.

However, there are questions about the parliamentary committee's foreign tour with the respective ministry's finance.

Experts on parliament affairs said there is a fear of conflict of interest in the committee on whether the respective ministries organised such foreign trips with the ministry's fund.

The government has several times given its opinion against the parliamentary committee's foreign tours with the ministry's funding.

At a meeting held in late August, the parliamentary standing committee on home affairs ministry had recommended the respective ministry to organise a foreign tour.

The committee made the recommendation to get a better idea on ​​how to make the activities of the agencies under the ministry and the UN missions in different countries more dynamic and effective.

In another meeting held in late November, the ministry informed the standing committee about the progress in this regard.

The committee was informed that passport and visa related activities are underway in 15 Bangladesh missions.

Employees of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Department of Immigration and Passports are working in the Passport and Visa Wing in these missions, the ministry informed the committee.

Once the Covid-19 situation is normal, a plan can be made to inspect the passport and visa issuance activities at those missions, the ministry told the standing committee.

According to the ministry, the nine countries these 15 missions are situated in are: the United States, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Italy, Kuwait, Singapore and Qatar.

Speaking to The Daily Star, Md Shamsul Haque Tuku, chairman of the standing committee, said the committee in its meeting had discussed this issue, but no decision was not finalised.

"I told the meeting that such tours were not necessary at this moment," he also said.

The ruling Awami League MP from Pabna-1 also said they actually wanted to get a first-hand experience how different foreign missions are delivering services to our expatriate Bangladeshis.

"We could get that information over telephone. But sometimes first-hand experience becomes useful," he also said.

According to the Jatiya Sangsad's Rules of Procedure, the function of the Parliamentary Committees under the Ministry is to review the activities of the respective ministries, to investigate irregularities and serious allegations and to examine the Bills or any matter sent by the Parliament.

The government often discourages such visit of the parliamentary standing committee members with the funding of the respective ministry.

In a letter to the Speaker in 2016, the then Finance Minister AMA Muhith had said, "The financial discipline of the government is being ruined due to the foreign tours by the parliamentary committee with the money of the ministry."

In 2016, the Prime Minister's Office opined that the Parliament Secretariat may bear the cost of foreign trips of MPs following the parliamentary standing committee on expatriate welfare and overseas employment ministry's recommendations to arrange a foreign trip.

Parliament affairs expert Nizamuddin Ahmed, also a former professor of Chattogram University told The Daily Star, that the recommendation of the parliamentary committee on the home ministry was not reasonable.

"The parliamentary committee does not have any moral basis to hold the ministry accountable for its activities after traveling abroad with the money of the ministry. If the visit was in the interest of an investigation or in the interest of state security, then it would be logical," he said.

He said MPs can definitely travel abroad if necessary. But for this, a separate budget should be allocated in the budget of parliament.