Zonayed Saki, chief coordinator of the Ganosamhati Andolon, has said that the timeframe suggested by Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus regarding the national election needs to be more precise, asserting that if the election is to be held after December, an explanation must be provided for the delay.
He made these remarks on Sunday during a dialogue in the LD Hall of the parliament building, organized at the invitation of the National Consensus Commission.
Zonayed Saki said: "On issues where there are disagreements among stakeholders, we must go to the people, and that must be through an electoral process. Building national unity is a crucial task of the state.”
He added: “We hope that based on whatever consensus is reached through the discussions, it will be possible to move towards a democratic transformation and a new settlement.”
He further said: “But those who have sought to prolong their grip on power have used the state in every possible way. Sheikh Hasina, by almost pocketing the state machinery, turned Bangladesh into a fascist state."
Speaking on behalf of the Ganosamhati Andolon, Zonayed Saki said: "The discussions held between the National Consensus Commission, political parties, and other stakeholders, and the resulting consensus, must be documented.”
He added: “On the reform proposals where consensus has not yet been established, further dialogue must continue to reach the highest possible level of consensus. We call upon the National Consensus Commission to take this initiative."
He also reaffirmed the Ganosamhati Andolon’s determination to continue efforts towards building consensus.
Other speakers at the meeting said that the Ganosamhati Andolon reiterates its call for the upcoming election to be conducted as an election to form a Constitutional Reform Council.
The party’s representatives stressed the need to document the agreed reforms by July 15 and to announce a July charter.
They called for constitutional reforms agreed upon in the charter to be implemented after the council election, while other reforms should be enacted through ordinances before the election.
The meeting also stressed that any reform proposals for which a consensus cannot be achieved should be placed before the people through the election.
Ganosamhati Andolon representatives called for ensuring maximum public involvement in the reform process through this method.
During the discussions, it was mentioned that Ganosamhati Andolon had previously agreed to 138 proposals put forward by the National Consensus Commission, disagreed with 11, partially agreed with 13, and offered no opinion on four proposals.
Discussions were held on the 138 proposals they agreed upon, along with several special recommendations made by the party.
The party also urged the commission to continue discussions to achieve consensus regarding the appointment authority for various constitutional bodies under the NCC framework.
Additionally, they proposed that, if a caretaker government system were to be reinstated in the future, it should be composed of representatives from the upper house of parliament.
