GM Quader doubts ‘flawless’ performance of 12th parliament

The opposition leader in parliament, GM Quader, has expressed doubts about the current parliament’s ability in representing the nation, saying, “It will not be unrealistic to fear that the 12th national parliament will never be able to perform its duties flawlessly.”

The Jatiya Party leader made the statement in his congratulatory speech for the newly elected speaker in parliament Tuesday.

Referring to the election results, GM Quader said, “The national parliament serves as the gathering place of all parties and views. Here, the governing party is one side, and the opposition party is the other. As per the post-election count, as many as 75 per cent seats belong to the ruling party, while 21 per cent are independent but mostly aligned with the ruling party. Only 3 to 4 per cent members are from the opposition.”

In the 12th national polls, the Jatiya Party managed to win only 11 seats, though it had negotiated with the ruling party, Awami League, for 26 constituencies. All the 11 seats that they secured were among the negotiated ones.

GM Quader pointed out the sole dominance of ruling Awami League in the current parliament, saying, “If we call the ruling party red, this parliament will turn completely red, with a mere splash of green. It will be tough to find the (representation of) entire nation in this parliament. How far this parliament would be able to represent the nation – it is a concerning issue.”

“We had an intention that both the sides will be equal – one is the governing party and the other is the opposition, with a close number (member count). Then it would be an even fight, debate, favouring one's own views. The parliament will decide in favour of the people, it was the purpose of forming this parliament,” he added.

GM Quader, however, hoped that the speaker would perform her duties impartially. He sought enough floor for presenting dissents and vowed to continue their efforts to lessen the imbalance in the parliament.