Speaker asks MPs to speak gently as children may be watching
Speaker Abdul Hamid on Tuesday asked the lawmakers to be guarded in their speech in the House to ensure that their words would not have a negative impact on the minds of the children who watch the sessions on TV.
The speaker made the call when the 14th session of the Parliament resumed with the opposition parties continuing their boycott.
Hamid iterated his call to the opposition members to participate in House’s proceedings and join committee meetings. ‘Though the session will be short, I expect your active participation to make the Parliament meaningful. Both the treasury and opposition benches are the same to me. I expect you to make the Parliament functional by healthy debate,’ he said
In the maiden sitting of the 14th session, a group of 50 students of Sher-e-Banglanagar School saw the parliamentary proceedings directly from a newly introduced gallery dedicated to children.
The speaker nominated Khan Tipu Sultan, ABM Golam Mostafa, AKM Maidul Islam, Zafrul Islam Chowdhury and Habibun Nahar as panel chairs for the session.
The session will continue to September 19 and its sittings will begin at 5:00pm every weekday, as decided by the Business Advisory Council headed by the speaker.
Prime Minister and leader of the House Sheikh Hasina, deputy speaker Shawkat Ali, deputy leader of the House Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, chief whip Abdus Shahid, minister without portfolio Suranjit Sengupta, committee members Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Tofail Ahmed, Md Fazle Rabbi Mia, Rashed Khan Menon and Abdul Matin Khasru were among those who attended the meeting.
Besides the regular question hour, the maiden sitting dealt with a call attention notice on a matter of public importance and placing of reports of the parliamentary standing committee on the Ministry of Science and Technology and the committee on the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management.
Minister for law, justice and parliamentary affairs Shafique Ahmed placed the Ordinance promulgated by President Muhammad Zillur Rahman on the Grameen Bank and the Ordinance on return of vested property for ratification by the Parliament.
The Ordinance on Grameen Bank has brought about a change in the process of appointing its managing Ddirector and his qualifications.
The Grameen Bank (Amendment) Ordinance 2012, promulgated on August 22, stipulates that its chairman, in consultation with the board, shall constitute a Selection Committee of not less than three and not more than five members for choosing a candidate for appointment as managing director.
The selection committee shall nominate three candidates and preference shall be given to persons having knowledge and experience of rural economy, finance or of microfinance.
The founder of Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, who along with the bank jointly won the Nobel Prize in 2006, criticized the Ordinance, saying that government has been interfering with the bank’s activities and termed the day (August 23), when a gazette notification was published, as a ‘black day’.
The government said it was not interfering with the bank but was rather trying to streamline its operation.
Courtesy of New Age
