report in Prothom Alo, July 14, 2023
Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has announced a 31-point pledges to reform the constitution, the state machinery, and achieve economic emancipation of the country.
Party’s secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir made the announcement at a press conference in the capital’s Gulshan on Thursday.
The de facto opposition party came up with the programmes one day after announcing their one-point demand to oust the ruling Awami League government.
The announcement was made from a mass rally in Dhaka’s Naya Paltan on Wednesday.
Mentioning the 31-point programmes as “pledges”, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said this outline is extremely time-befitting.
The BNP leader said the ownership of the state is not in the hands of people who built this state through a liberation war with the dream of establishing democracy, equality, human dignity and social justice. The incumbent authoritarian government has destroyed the state machinery. This state needs to be renovated and reformed.
He further said a “pro-people welfare government based on national consensus” will be formed through coordination of the political parties that are taking part in the movement to overthrow this government after winning a free, fair, neutral and participatory election with the view to return the ownership of the state to the people.
Mirza Fakhrul claimed that the Awami League government has brought many illogical and fundamental amendments in the constitution to serve its ulterior motives by seizing the state power for more than a decade.
He said all the controversial and undemocratic amendments and changes will be assessed by forming a “constitution reform commission” and will be rejected or amended and other essential constitutional reforms will be made.
People’s democratic rights will be reestablished by reinstalling referendum system in the constitution, Mirza Fakhrul added.
BNP standing committee members Mirza Abbas, Abdul Moin Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury and Selima Rahman were present in the media conference.
https://en.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/politics/ab4bixvtzb
