Quader wants BNP’s role in EC formation

Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader on Tuesday hoped that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party would play a responsible role, which a democratic political party follows, in formation of new Election Commission.

“We hope, the BNP will follow the responsibility and duty that a democratic political party plays in formation of an acceptable Election Commission,” he said in a statement.

At the same time, he said, they hoped that the BNP would return to the path of democracy and healthy politics, shunning the policy of making misleading statements and propaganda.

Quader, also the road transport and bridges minister, said the BNP never believes in elections, constitution and conventional norms of democracy.

“The country’s people know, the BNP was born killing the Constitution achieved in exchange of the blood of three millions martyrs. Like the past, they (BNP leaders) want to seize power through killing, coup and conspiracy.

Quader said when the ‘president is following a democratic and constitutional process of initiating dialogues with all registered political parties over the EC formation, the country’s identified evil forces are engaged in a heinous attempt to mislead countrymen by standing against the existing democratic norms and the constitution. He said the country’s people did not forget the Sadek Ali-Aziz-like-Election Commissions.

Violating the Constitution and democratic norms, the then Prime Minister Khaleda Zia formed the Election Commission involving her loyal people without any consultation with political parties, the AL general secretary said.   He said resisting the BNP’s conspiracy with hatred, the people of the country reestablished their right to vote under the leadership of Bangabandhu’s daughter, Sheikh Hasina.

Welcoming the President’s initiative to hold dialogues with the registered political parties to form a search committee over the EC formation, Quader said the invited political parties will play a responsible role in forming a neutral, strong and effective EC by participating in the dialogues. 

He said Sheikh Hasina turned the EC into an independent body in 2009 by enacting a law.  During her regimes in 2012 and 2017, he said, a unique instance was set by forming ECs in accordance with the Constitution and based on a consensus of all political parties.

Quader said the BNP never believes in the Constitution, democratic norms and election process, while the BNP secretary general openly stated “The BNP takes part in elections to make the EC and election process questionable”.

Mentioning that the tenure of the incumbent EC will expire in February 2022, he said Bangladesh Awami League is committed to provide all-out support to the initiative taken by the President to form an independent and effective EC following the Constitution. 

He also hoped that other political parties would play their responsible role in this end.