BNP conditionally agrees to Prime Minister's term limit proposal

The BNP has conditionally agreed to the National Unity Commission’s proposal that limits a person to serving as Prime Minister for a maximum of 10 years. However, Salahuddin Ahmad, a member of the party’s standing committee, said that if a “constitutional and codified appointment committee” is formed, the party might not support the proposal to restrict the Prime Minister’s term.

He made these remarks on Wednesday (June 25) after the second phase meeting of the National Unity Commission held at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka.

Salahuddin Ahmad said that the idea of running the state properly by only reducing the executive powers is not correct. He added that just because a person became a dictator in the past, it does not mean the executive powers should be weakened permanently. This mindset needs to change.

Regarding the constitutional appointment process, he clarified BNP’s position by saying that appointment committees or search committees can be formed under existing laws. These can be reformed to ensure accountability and keep them free from executive influence. There is no need to create a new separate body in the constitution for this purpose.

The meeting also discussed the basic principles of the constitution. BNP expressed their wish to keep the phrase “Bismillah” and “full faith and trust in Allah” as included in the Fifth Amendment. They also supported adding the values of equality, human dignity, social justice, democracy, religious freedom, and communal harmony in the constitution as proposed by the National Unity Commission.