Party reforms proposed by Khaleda discussed

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In a bid to bring amendments to its constitution, BNP has started working with a set of party reform proposals initiated by its Chairperson Khaleda Zia.

The amendments being discussed include curbing of the chairperson’s power and scrapping of the provision for maintaining front organisations, said party insiders.

Following directions from the chairperson, a team comprising party leaders, lawyers and chairperson’s advisers had formulated a draft of the amendments last year, but Khaleda could not disclose it back then as her movement and public appearances were being restricted by the military backed caretaker government prior to her arrest on September 3, 2007.

The team led by a party standing committee member had the proposals ready on May 2007, while the erstwhile party secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan was busy announcing his own party reform proposals keeping the chairperson out of the process.

The proposals prepared by the chairperson’s team are now being deliberated on ahead of the December 18 parliamentary election, which might be finalised soon in order to meet the prerequisites for being registered with the Election Commission following the amended Representation of People Order (RPO), hinted party leaders.

“Some changes might come to the party constitution but the decision will be taken only after the dialogue with the caretaker government on October 15,” a senior leader of the party told The Daily Star yesterday.

According to the party leaders, the proposals include provisions for electing the secretary general, a senior vice-president, and at least a half of the members of standing committee.

They however said although the proposals say that the chairperson will be elected by the party council for no more than two five-year terms, the party leaders are not that eager now to bring the provision into the party constitution as ‘the situation has changed’.

Councils of the party and its front organisations must be held within six months of parliamentary elections, the leaders quoted from the reform proposals.

They also said if the new electoral law continues to bar having front organisations then the party will take ‘necessary decisions’ in light of the law.

Bhuiyan, who was expelled from the party by the chairperson on the eve of her arrest, had announced his party reform proposals on June 25 last year, garnering support from over 100 former lawmakers of the party.

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