Ministers’ absence delays parliament proceedings, Speaker Hafiz warns

Parliamentary proceedings were disrupted due to the absence of ministers and unpreparedness among lawmakers today (27 April), prompting Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed to warn the chief whip and urge lawmakers to prioritise attendance.

The speaker raised the issue twice during the sitting, at the beginning of the session and again before the Maghrib break, highlighting concerns over delays and the failure to take up scheduled discussions.

At the start of the session, three notices of urgent public importance under Rule 71 could not be discussed on time due to the absence of the concerned ministers.

Under Rule 71, members of parliament, with the speaker’s permission, draw the attention of relevant ministers to urgent matters of public interest.

The session began at 3:05pm, five minutes behind schedule, with the question-and-answer session.

Discussions were then scheduled on notices addressed to the home minister, the road transport and bridges minister, and the disaster management and relief minister.

The first notice was raised by BNP lawmaker Zainul Abdin Farroque, addressed to the home minister. Although the speaker initially asked him to read out the notice, he later said the minister was absent and required time.

The speaker then announced that the second notice, addressed to the road transport and bridges minister, could not be discussed due to the minister’s absence. All notices were subsequently postponed.

Later, when Sunamganj-1 lawmaker Kamruzzaman Kamrul was called to present his notice, he was also absent from the chamber, preventing discussion.

The notices were reintroduced for discussion around 4:20pm.

During a point of order, Jamaat-e-Islami lawmaker Mahbubur Rahman said members should be more responsible, noting that both the previous day’s session and the current one had started late. 

He called for clear explanations for delays and stressed the need to ensure attendance.

In response, the speaker said the deputy speaker had announced the 3pm start time the previous day, but delays occurred as many members arrived late. 

He urged lawmakers to be punctual in future.

Chief Whip Nurul Islam Moni said parliament usually starts on time, adding that the previous day’s delay was around 10 minutes due to a parliamentary meeting and a state programme involving the prime minister. He expressed regret for the delay.

He also said the prime minister was in Jashore today and many ministers and lawmakers were accompanying her, affecting attendance in parliament. 

He urged ruling party members to maintain punctuality.

Later in the session, at around 6:15pm, the speaker invited Netrokona lawmaker Lutfozzaman Babar to speak, but he said he was not prepared.

Addressing the chief whip, the speaker remarked that lists of speakers were provided, yet members were often not ready to speak.

In response, the chief whip said some members prefer to speak in the presence of the prime minister, as they want him to hear their speech. He added that the list had been prepared after discussion among whips.

However, Babar said he had not been consulted.

The speaker again pointed out the low presence of ministers, saying only three were visible in the front row and stressed that ministers should listen to members raising constituency issues.

In reply, the chief whip said 20 to 30 ministers were present in the chamber, though not necessarily in the front row, while others were away on official duties with the prime minister.

The speaker noted that most members speak on issues such as health, education, drugs and transport, which require ministerial attention.

Concluding the discussion, he reminded lawmakers that attending parliament sessions is their most important responsibility and should take precedence over all other engagements.