Bangladesh News

The Nagorik Committee 2006 formed to prepare a vision paper for Bangladesh in 2021 yesterday put forward a set of 16 urgent tasks for the caretaker government and a 38-point priority action plan for the next elected government.

Formulation of the tasks and action plan is based on regional dialogues in major cities and towns of the country for the last four months, organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue in collaboration with The Daily Star, the Prothom Alo and Channel i.

Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, member-secretary of the Nagorik Committee presented the priorities for the caretaker government and immediate action plan for the elected government at a discussion meeting in the capital.

Convenor of the 28-member committee Prof Rehman Sobhan chaired the discussion held at the CIRDAP auditorium.

The committee said the caretaker government’s primary responsibility will be to ensure a free and fair national election for constituting the 9th parliament. And for this it will have to go for ‘electoral and political reforms’.

In the process of such reforms, the caretaker government will have to accomplish 16 major tasks. These include ensuring neutrality of the Election Commission, law and order, separation of the judiciary, disclosure of particulars of the candidates, liaison with other institutions, declaration on tax amnesty by the candidates, amendment to Representation of the People Order, enacting the ‘code of conduct’ as law, increasing the number of polling booths, updating voter list, introduction of the voter identification system, accreditation of monitors, proper access to print and electronic media and enforcing the bar on bank loan defaulters in contesting the election.

The 38-point action plan concerns parliament and cabinet related issues, local government, macroeconomic issues, employment generation, infrastructure, foreign direct investment proposals, health and education, national policy for women, judiciary and new institutional initiatives.

On the cabinet and parliament related issues, the Nagorik Committee suggested disposal of election disputes within 180 days, appointment of deputy speaker from the opposition bench, proportionate representation of opposition members in parliamentary standing committees, filling the reserved women’s seats through direct election, declaration of assets and liabilities of members of the cabinet and leading opposition functionaries, declaration of financial and commercial interests of all parliament members, and cancelling the provision of duty free car import by parliament members.

In the local government sector, the committee suggested announcing a firm schedule for upazila election to revive the upazila system, and restriction on members of parliament in interfering with the functioning of upazila.

On macroeconomic issues, the newly elected government will have to review the annual development programme to eliminate unapproved projects, review the PRSP in a five- year context to regain the lost grounds and develop a set of measures for strengthening capital market.

The committee suggested undertaking a survey of regional inequality within 12 months.

For infrastructure development, it suggested finalisation of immediate decisions on connectivity with the Trans Asian highway and railway systems.

The suggestions include deploying a high-powered competent committee to finalise Tata’s investment proposal and formation of an independent committee of experts and stake holders to assess the economic viability and social impact of Phulbari coal mine project.

In judiciary, the Supreme Court should introduce a system of recording the exact reasons if and when any judge feels embarrassed to hear particular cases, the committee suggested.

Review of the national women’s policy and implementation of the Chittagong Hill Tracts peace accord are also among its suggestions

On new institutional initiatives, the committee suggested forming a permanent pay and service commission for government officials and employees, passage of freedom of information act in the first sitting of the parliament and suitable amendments to the official secrets act and constitution of an independent and fully empowered human rights commission.