Institutional reforms will stall if economic stability does not come: Debapriya Bhattacharya

Institutional reforms will stall if economic stability does not come: Debapriya Bhattacharya

Staff Correspondent, morenewsbd.com
Staff Correspondent, morenewsbd.com

Published: 05:49 27 October 2024

Debapriya Bhattacharya, Head of the National White Paper Drafting Committee and Honorary Fellow of the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), said that if economic stability or If relief does not come, progress towards institutional reforms or electoral systems will be hampered.

Debapriya Bhattacharya said, if there is no reform or status quo in the economic situation, if there is no relief - then the pace of moving towards institutional reforms, or the electoral system, will be affected in one way or another. If one thinks that only institutional and electoral reforms will proceed, but economic affairs will continue as they are (in the current fragile state), then we are mistaken.

The head of the white paper drafting committee said, "Our economic situation will ultimately determine how quickly and to what extent we can undertake institutional reforms, and how soon or how late we can move towards an electoral system."

Debapriya said, those who are in charge (in the government), they must now understand that it is important to pay attention to some areas. Real wages must be protected, agricultural products must be priced fairly, social protections must be protected. Students should be re-admitted to educational institutions, health services should be seen to function properly. All must be protected through law and order.

He said, in the same way, an attitude of assurance and comfort should be created within the country. In this case, those who are responsible in the field of economy should clarify their policies, their programs should be clarified. It can be through revised budget formulation or next budget formulation. Just clarifying won't do. It must be implemented swiftly, efficiently and with accountability, eliminating incoordination.

He also said, now it is often heard that it should be banned, it should be removed from the market, it should be kept under various controls. If control is given to individuals by political considerations - it has an economic significance. If a person's political rights are undermined – his right to participate in the economy is also undermined. So it must be considered. When we talk about political control over groups of individuals or groups – it has economic significance. We are also imposing a kind of control on his future savings, investment, employment generation.

It's a new situation, a new opportunity. A lot of reforms are needed here. If that doesn't mean the interim government will do it all alone, then we live in a false world. Then it is wrong to complain. Everyone has to fulfill their responsibilities here.

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