Speaker urges opposition to avoid frequent walkouts from parliament

Speaker Major (retd) Hafiz Uddin Ahmed has urged the opposition party not to walk out of parliament without valid reason, while also calling upon the treasury bench to engage in dialogue with them.

“Walking out of parliament is an established right and a political practice for the opposition,” he told reporters after an exchange of greetings with the leaders of the Barishal Chamber of Commerce and Industries at the Barishal Circuit House today (18 April).

“However, prolonged boycotts of parliament harm the institution and deprive people of their rights,” he said.

The speaker stressed that those who campaigned together against autocracy must maintain their unity. 

“Otherwise, those who fled abroad may return and re-establish misrule,” he said.

“The last sixteen years were the darkest period. Jokes were staged in the name of elections, and ordinary people had no rights. They brushed aside democracy and human rights,” the speaker said.

He added that democracy had been restored through the sacrifices of students and the public.

“We hope that democracy will never be lost again. No party should attempt to send democracy into exile. All parties must remain united to ensure that the rights of the common people are always upheld, democracy prevails, people can choose their preferred government, and autocracy does not return,” he further added.