Major reforms to constitution should be left to elected govt

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir yesterday categorically said the safest approach for the interim government is to talk to the people and get their consent before making fundamental changes to the constitution or drafting a new one.
“I think the government should make reforms to organisations like the administration and the Election Commission that are required to hold an election. The parliament to be formed through that election can make all the necessary amendments to the constitution,” he told reporters at the BNP chairperson’s office in Gulshan.
Fakhrul said public opinion, people’s desires and the legal matters should be considered before making constitutional amendments, reports UNB.
“This government should have formed a revolutionary government and not taken an oath under this constitution. That hasn’t happened. They took the oath under this constitution,” he said, adding that reforms must be done within the current constitution’s framework.
Experts can make proposals, but fundamental changes to the constitution require assembly of constituents, reports UNB.
About the commissions for reforms, the BNP leader suggested that the interim government talk to political parties, professional bodies and other stakeholders.
No reforms will be sustainable without people’s participation, he said.
Regarding election, he said he never mentioned any specific timeframe and will not do so in the future. But delays will harm the country, society and politics.
Responding to a question, he termed Dhaka University’s decision to suspend student politics a “bad move”.
“Depoliticisation is not the answer,” he said.
Fakhrul agrees that student bodies should not be directly affiliated with political parties.
This issue cannot be resolved by force or restrictions. “If that happens, what is the difference between a military government and this government?”
National leaders emerge from student politics, he said. “If we ban student politics again, who will benefit? It will benefit those who operate underground.”
Speaking about the racial tension in the hills, he said, “I believe this part of a strategy to destabilise the government and the political landscape of Bangladesh. I do not consider the recent incidents in the Chittagong Hill Tracts as isolated ones
“The events can be viewed as an attempt to instigate a counter-revolution, undermining the benefits we have achieved through an uprising.”
He said Sheikh Hasina’s remarks from India had an impact in Bangladesh. “Overall, the situation is not comfortable… there are real causes for concern.”
On BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s health, Fakhrul said doctors do not deem her fit for flying, which is delaying her travel abroad for medical care.