Failure to reach consensus to be a collective responsibility, not just commission's: Ali Riaz
He highlighted that the NCC’s success depends on achieving structural reforms through collective cooperation
Any failure to reach consensus would be a collective responsibility among all parties, not just the commission, National Consensus Commission (NCC) Vice Chairman Ali Riaz said today (15 July).
Watch: Press briefing after NCC meeting
"Therefore, if we fail, this failure is not the commission's alone, but a collective responsibility. Success depends on achieving structural reforms through collective cooperation," he said during the 14th day of the second round of dialogues between the Consensus Commission and political parties.
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At the dialogue, which began this morning (15 July) at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, Ali Riaz also said the NCC is not a separate entity.
"It is a partner in the efforts of political parties."
He highlighted that the NCC's success depends on achieving structural reforms through collective cooperation.
The day's discussions are focused on the proposed structure and functions of an upper house in a bicameral legislature.
During the meeting presided over by Ali Riaz, he called for the expedited resolution of remaining contentious issues during ongoing consensus talks.
He noted that while preliminary discussions had achieved consensus on several matters, critical differences still require urgent attention.
The Consensus Commission's vice chairman urged the political parties to realise their responsibilities in reaching an accord.
Also present are commission members Safor Raj Hossain, Justice Emdadul Haque, Badiul Alam Majumder, and Ayub Mia. Dr Iftekharuzzaman and the Chief Adviser's Special Assistant Monir Haider joined the discussions as well.
In today's discussion, representatives from 30 political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Gono Odhikar Parishad, Ganosamhati, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Revolutionary Workers Party, and Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party, are participating.
Discussions are revisiting proposals on the formation and operation of an upper house — a topic already debated over three previous sessions. Deliberations will also cover women's representation in the lower house.
Key constitutional and governance issues such as the appointment process of the chief justice, the caretaker government model, and the scope and conditions for declaring a state of emergency are expected to be tabled later in the day.
