MPs spent very little time on law making
Quorum crisis in the ninth parliament caused the country a waste of more than Tk 104 crore, Transparency International Bangladesh has said.
Over 222 hours (9 days) were wasted due to a quorum crisis in the 418 parliament sittings from 2009 to 2013. This means 32 minutes were wasted in each sitting, causing a waste of Tk 25 lakh.
The findings are based on a TIB study published at a press conference in the capital's Cirdap auditorium yesterday.
At least 60 MPs must be present, besides the person presiding over the session, to constitute a quorum of the House and to start its business.
The anti-graft body in its report said the expenditure per minute is Tk 78,000 when parliament is in session.
In the eighth parliament during 2001-2006, when the BNP-led four-party alliance was in power, 227 hours were wasted due to a quorum crisis.
The TIB in its observation said as there is no opposition party in a "real sense" in the 10th Jatiya Sangsad, there is no opportunity for holding the government accountable.
In his reaction, Law Minister Anisul Huq told reporters that the TIB report was "biased and unexpected".
The study shows MPs in the ninth parliament had spent very little time (8.2 percent) of the total 1331 hours in the 19 sessions of the last parliament in the law-making process. UK and Indian lawmakers in 2009 spent 55 and 53 percent of the sitting times to enact laws.
In the case of the Bangladesh parliament, only 57 of the 350 lawmakers took part in the law-making process, taking about 12 minutes on average to pass a bill. It was about 20 minutes in the eighth parliament, the study said.
According to TIB, people's participation in the law-making process was not ensured. Besides, restructuring of sentences within paragraphs, using synonyms and inclusion or exclusion of punctuations got prominence while unanimously passing amendments to various bills.
The TIB said it was alarming that the number of businessmen-turned-MPs was increasing. In the ninth parliament, it was 57 percent, compared to 17.5 percent in the first parliament. On the other hand, the number of lawyers-turned-MPs is decreasing. It was 14 percent in the last parliament.
And although the budget session is the best opportunity for lawmakers to speak in the House, 32 MPs did not take part in the budget discussion in the last parliament.
On the positive side, said the TIB, the attendance of lawmakers in the ninth parliament rose to 63 percent from 55 percent in the previous one. The formation of all parliamentary committees in the first session is another positive side of the ninth Sangsad.
But the culture of parliament boycott and poor participation of women MPs in the law-making process are among its other negative sides, it added.
The anti-graft body suggested that parliament pass a law banning the boycott of the House. It also said the House can make rules against an MP being absent from more than 30 consecutive sittings.
It also demanded that the Sangsad sit at least 130 days in a year. The figure was 84 days on average in the ninth parliament.
Besides, it recommended that every sitting continue for at least six hours, which was around three hours in the last parliament, including the 32 minutes wasted due to the quorum crisis.
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