JS quorum crisis is embarrassing

THE quorum crisis in the Jatiyo Sangsad has always been a matter of embarrassment for everyone. Now that the tenth JS is in place, one would have thought that the overwhelming presence of the ruling party, along with an opposition that is clearly on friendly terms with the government, would have ensured a smooth functioning of the House. That has not happened. Almost every sitting of the House is dogged by the presence of fewer than 60 lawmakers, the number necessary for deliberations to get under way, in the chamber.
Such a situation puts us all, and not just the MPs who fail to turn up in the House, to shame. As it is, the tenth JS is in huge need of convincing the nation, considering the manner in which as many as 153 MPs were elected unopposed, that it means business.
We are now given to understand that perhaps the presence of lawmakers who have just made their entry to the women's reserved seats in the JS will ensure a quorum at the sittings of parliament. That is a pity. Are we now to depend on women chosen as lawmakers by their parties to make the JS carry out its constitutionally required functions?
The simple truth is that unless our MPs get serious about their jobs and unless the ruling party, especially the Leader of the House, makes sure that parliament gets into normal, purposeful sessions, the nation will not have much to expect from the present JS.