Consensus commission amends proposals in response to differing opinions on reform: Ali Riaz

The National Consensus Commission’s Vice President Professor Ali Riaz has said that the commission is trying to revise and resubmit the proposals whenever political parties express differing views on any reform proposals.

Ali Riaz mentioned that there is a visible trend towards consensus among political parties through dialogue.

He said that since the parties are emphasising structural changes, the commission is trying to stay aligned with them.

He made these remarks at the start of the 10th session of the second phase of discussions with political parties, held today, Monday, at the Foreign Service Academy’s Doel Hall in Dhaka.

Today’s agenda includes the expansion of subordinate courts at the upazila level, the declaration of a state of emergency, and women’s representation.

Professor Ali Riaz stated that the issues on which consensus was reached during the first phase of discussions were not brought up in the second phase by the commission.

Highlighting the commission’s flexible stance in the interest of consensus, Professor Ali Riaz said that when the commission proposed the formation of a National Constitutional Council (NCC), most political parties expressed disagreement. Later, the proposal was revised and presented again.

Referring to the proposal regarding the fundamental principles of the state, Ali Riaz said that during the first phase of discussions, most political parties objected to the commission’s proposal for pluralism. Therefore, the commission did not retain that proposal in subsequent discussions.

Ali Riaz called on political parties to cooperate in completing the consensus discussions.

He said, “We are pressed for time. The political parties also have their own programmes. But the commission requests that, as much as possible, they participate in the discussions to resolve the outstanding issues.”

Today’s discussion with the National Consensus Commission was attended by 30 political parties, including the BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), and Islami Andolan.

The session was moderated by Monir Haider, Special Assistant (Consensus) to the Chief Adviser. Other attendees included commission members Badiul Alam Majumdar, Iftekharuzzaman, and Md Ayub Mia.