JP unhappy over JS body formation
In a surprise speech in parliament, senior Jatiya Party leader Kazi Feroz Rashid yesterday said although the JP is the main opposition party in the House, people do not consider it to be so as the public perception of the party is very poor.
The lawmaker made the comment following Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's move of not picking any JP lawmaker as the chief of any parliamentary standing committee.
Speaking on point of order, Feroz said, “It is an utter humiliation for the Jatiya Party although we are the main opposition in parliament. People are questioning us why we were not given any chairman post in the parliamentary watchdog committees.”
He argued that if the JP lawmakers were made chiefs of some parliamentary standing committees, they could have played role in making parliament more effective.
The JP leader blasted the government for making him a member of the parliamentary standing committee on the post and telecom ministry. “Although I have knowledge of the telecom sector as a former minister, I have been made the ninth member of the parliamentary watchdog on the post and telecom ministry. I would have been happier if I was not included in the committee.”
In the last parliament (2009-2014), leader of the House Hasina had set a rare example by making three opposition MPs chiefs of parliamentary standing committees, including two from her archrival BNP. The move was widely appreciated by all.
But in the current parliament, the PM has denied opposition legislators the chairmanship of any of the 45 parliamentary bodies, which are constitutionally empowered to ensure parliament's oversight function.
The Awami League last week finalised the formation of the committees by making its own lawmakers chiefs of the parliamentary bodies. Opposition MPs, however, have been made members of different committees.
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