Staff Correspondent
Treasury bench lawmakers in parliament yesterday opposed ratification of Local Government (upazila parishad) (amendment) Ordinance 2008, and supported a proposal for block allocation of development fund to lawmakers.
The ordinance was promulgated by the immediate past caretaker government scrapping parliament members’ (MP) authority to control upazila parishads’ development activities.
The ruling coalition lawmakers expressed their opposition to ratification of the ordinacnce by yelling out ‘no’ as Local Government and Rural Development (LGRD) Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said the ordinance will be placed in the parliament for ratification if the lawmakers want.
The LGRD minister also said the government plans to amend the Upazila Parishads Act 1998, which was repealed by the caretaker government, adding that the act will be amended to ensure lawmakers’ involvement in development activities in upazilas.
The last Awami League (AL) government through the 1998 act empowered lawmakers with the authority to oversee development work in upazilas, by making them advisers to upazila parishads in respective constituencies.
According to the act, it was mandatory for upazila parishads to discuss development activities with respective lawmakers and to get their recommendations for those.
During the question answer session of the day, AL lawmaker Shahiduzzaman Sarkar asked the LGRD minister whether the government will make block allocation of development fund to lawmakers for carrying out development activities in their constituencies, prompting treasury bench lawmakers to welcome the question with desk thumping.
In reply, the LGRD minister said Bangladesh does not have the system of making block allocation of funds to lawmakers.
He said block allocations to lawmakers exist in India to ensure their involvement in localised development.
Replying to the AL lawmaker’s query, the LGRD minister also disclosed that the government plans to ensure lawmakers’ participation in upazila level development activities.
The lawmakers demanded infrastructure development including building of roads and culverts in their constituencies.
Courtesy: thedailystar.net
