Bangladesh needs to rewrite its constitution to streamline its institutions and ensure the continuation of its path towards democracy, said Ali Riaz, a distinguished professor in the Department of Politics and Government at Illinois State University in the USA, on Thursday.
"My personal opinion is that the constitution needs to be rewritten. Otherwise, the institutions cannot be strengthened to ensure democracy," he said. He suggested that this should be done through a constitutional assembly if necessary.
Mr. Riaz, who is also a member of the CGS advisory board, made these remarks during a press conference organized by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS) at the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in the city.
The CGS executive director, Zillur Rahman, announced plans to host a series of dialogues to discuss priority areas of reform for the interim government.
Professor Riaz justified the need for constitutional reform by noting that the current constitution has limited avenues for amendment, as one-third of it has been deemed the basic structure, making it untouchable.
He also expressed his opinion that political leaders should be limited to two consecutive terms in office.
"I personally believe that two terms are sufficient, as is the case in most other countries. Term limits are generally in place, and given the unique circumstances in Bangladesh, this should be carefully considered," he added.
He also opined that the reconstruction of constitutional institutions and decentralisation of the government's power in different sectors.
"If these changes are not made there will be room for another autocratic regime to rear its ugly head," he added.
The CGS will be hosting dialogues focusing on the constitution, human rights and unlawful use of law enforcement, justice system, civil administration, constitutional bodies, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, financial policies, bank loans and foreign loans, and media.
These dialogues will be held in both national and regional levels in four different divisional cities.
The CGS will create reports extracted from these dialogues and present them to the interim government within the next five months.
Talking to newsmen, Dr Riaz stressed that the civil society is not enough for change and urged all citizens to come together in order to make significant changes.
Azizjst@yahoo.com