National Charter likely to be announced in July based on consensus

The National Charter may be proclaimed in July based on the consensus of all political parties in the country, National Consensus Commission member Badiul Alam Majumdar said on Saturday.

He, however, clarified that this was his personal opinion.

“We will hold talks with the political parties again in the next few days. Hopefully, we will be able to reach a consensus then,” Badiul, also the secretary of SHUJAN, a civil society organisation, told the media after attending a civic dialogue titled “National Charter and Citizens’ Expectations” in Rangpur.

“Based on that, the National Charter will be formulated and everyone will sign it. We hope this may happen in July. This is my aspiration, not an official decision,” he said.

With the theme, “Aware, organised, and vocal citizens are the safeguard of democracy,” the Rangpur metropolitan committee of SHUJAN organised the event at RDRS Auditorium in the city.

At the event, Badiul said a dangerous situation could arise if the same individual serves as both the prime minister and the chief of the ruling party.

He also viewed that if the same individual serves as prime minister for life, it becomes natural for him/her to emerge as an autocratic ruler.

“In the past, we witnessed that the same person became prime minister, leader of the House, and head of the party simultaneously. The prime minister leads the executive branch, while the leader of parliament heads the legislature. When the same individual plays both roles, it undermines the principle of separation of powers,” he said

When asked if the July Proclamation and the National Charter are the same thing, Badiul said, “The July Proclamation is a historic declaration which will highlight the July uprising in a historical context.

“On the other hand, the National Charter will be a set of reform proposals. Political parties will agree on it and sign it. They will determine how it will be implemented. In my view, these are two different things,” he added.