Proposed appointment committee won't curtail PM's power: Jamaat

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Nayeb-e-Ameer Syed Abdullah Muhammad Taher has said the proposed appointment committee for the constitutional and statutory bodies will not undermine the Prime Minister (PM)'s power in any way, reports UNB.

"This committee will not interfere with the prime minister's authority. Instead, it will help maintain balance within the committee," he told reporters during a break in the talks with the National Consensus Commission at the Foreign Service Academy in the capital on Sunday.

The Jamaat leader made the remark, apparently countering the argument of BNP that opposed the proposed appointment committee.

The seventh day of its second-round talks between the Commission and political parties started around 11:00 am, with the Commission's Vice Chairman Prof Ali Riaz presiding.

Taher said there will be a balanced composition within the committee where there will be the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, the Speaker, a representative of the judiciary and a member nominated by the President. "In it, both the government and the opposition will be represented," he said.

"Two-thirds of the political parties have already agreed on the composition of the committee. Only a few matters are still under discussion, but these can be settled with some small adjustments. We believe such a structure is essential for the country to ensure that qualified, neutral, and meritorious persons can serve in (key roles of) the administration, secretariat and parliament," he said.

Taher said they do not want any election without reforms. "Without reforms, we will again slide into the path of criminalisation of politics. People will lose interest in elections," he said.