The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

Leaders of different political parties yesterday said local government elections should not be held before holding the general elections.

They said it at a roundtable on 'Proposed Local Government Commission Ordinance and Supplementary Proposals' organised by Governance Coalition, a coalition of 27 NGOs at the CIRDAP auditorium in the city.

The leaders said the present government's constitutional mandate is to hold the parliament elections. They also said unless talking with the political parties about the proposed Local Government Commission the commission would not be effective.

Awami League presidium member Suranjit Sen Gupta, BNP leaders MK Anwar, Rizvi Ahmed, Workers Party president Rashed Khan Menon, PDP leader Ferdous Ahmed Quareshi and CPB general secretary Mujahidul Islam Selim, among others, spoke at the meeting moderated by Dr Salahuddin M Aminuzzaman, professor of Public Administration department of Dhaka University.

Suranjit Sen said, parliament elections should be held before all kinds of elections. "Avoiding the parliament nothing can be done so local government will not be strengthened by surpassing the parliament," he said.

"The local governments could be strengthened by the parliament," he said.

The AL leader said local governments and central government should be one another's supplement.

MK Anwar said, "The EC's primary task is to hold the parliament elections then the local government elections. As the tenure of parliament is already over the general elections should be held first."

"For sustainable development of every area of the country there is no alternative of strengthened local governments," he said.

Rashed Khan Menon said, "Parliament elections must be held before the local government elections."

He said MPs should not interfere into the local government's affairs and allocation of money from the national budget should be ensured for the local governments by the central government.

Mujahidul Islam Selim said, "Local governments should be free from political interference."

The 27 NGOs presented 18-point proposal to add into the proposed Local Government Commission Ordinance. Kartik Chandra Mandal coordinator of Manusher Janya Foundation presented keynote paper at the meeting.