Dhaka Correspondent:
The National Consensus Commission will not force any decision on the implementation of the July Charter, said the vice-chairman of the commission, Professor Ali Riaz. He said that the commission’s job is to discuss the opinions of political parties and submit recommendations to the government, but they do not have the power to implement it.
Professor Ali Riaz said this in his opening remarks at the Consensus Commission meeting with 29 political parties at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital on Thursday (September 11).
‘We can only make recommendations, we do not have the power to impose’
Ali Riaz said, “The commission does not have the power to implement the July Charter. We can only discuss and make recommendations to the government. The commission will not try to force anything.”
He also said that in the last discussion, the commission and the political parties were able to reach a consensus on some issues. Based on that discussion, a draft proposal was given to the political parties. Opinions have been received on that draft. The pledge was also discussed in detail and it is expected that the final draft will reach the parties this afternoon (Thursday).
He also said that there have been multiple discussions with experts on the process of implementing the July Charter. In this context, he said, “The expert panel consisted of two retired judges, three lawyers and a law professor. Based on their analysis and the opinions of the political parties, we have understood that some issues of the July Charter can be implemented by the interim government.”
Stating that the commission does not want to take any decision on its own, Professor Ali Riaz said, “We want to give specific recommendations to the government based on the discussions of the expert panel and political parties. It is the responsibility of the government to take the decision.”
From this position of the consensus commission, it is clear that the commission does not want to impose or show authority on the implementation of the July Charter. Rather, they are focused on presenting an acceptable roadmap to the government through continuous dialogue with the political parties and expert opinions.