BNP to join talks with govt Saturday

The BNP will participate in the new phase of talks initiated by the Prof Muhammad Yunus-led interim government on Saturday to discuss reform issues and the current political situation.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will lead a party delegation in the talks scheduled to be held at the State House Jamuna, said BNP media cell member Sayrul Kabir Khan.

He said BNP senior leaders, including standing committee members, will be there in the party delegation.

Meanwhile, Chief Adviser‍‍`s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam at a press briefing on Thursday said the talks will begin at 2:30pm on Saturday.

He said the BNP and several other political parties have been invited to participate in the dialogue on the first day.

Earlier, on Wednesday, Shafiqul Alam said the Council of Advisers will begin a fresh phase of dialogue with major political parties on Saturday, as part of the ongoing consultations with stakeholders.

 “The key purpose of the dialogue is to inform the political parties about progress over the six reform commissions’ work and discuss the law-and-order situation of the country and seek their suggestions,” he said.

There were two rounds of dialogue between the political parties and the Council of Advisers led by Prof Yunus after the formation of the interim government on August 8.

It is not decided yet how many days the dialogue with the political parties will continue.

The Press Secretary hoped that the six reform commissions will fully be formed with required members within the next two-three days.

The BNP formed six committees to determine the party‍‍`s position on the interim government‍‍`s state reform initiatives.

A BNP standing committee member said they will concentrate on the government‍‍`s proposed roadmap for state reforms and the upcoming election during the talks with the government.

The BNP leader said they are worried about the slow pace of the government‍‍`s efforts toward state reforms. “We’ll join the talks to understand their exact thoughts on the reforms and the election. We will also seek clarity on the interim government‍‍`s reform initiatives, particularly regarding the roadmap and timeline for these reforms.”

He said many members of their Standing Committee believe that the government is unnecessarily delaying the reforms.