The BNP parliamentary party meeting on Saturday discussed issues such as preventing fuel oils hoarding and smuggling, accidents in roads, railways and waterways during the Eid journey, and the decline in international aid for the Rohingya.

The meeting, held at the government party conference room at the Jatiya Sangsad with ruling lawmakers in attendance, was presided over by prime minister Tarique Rahman.

Power, energy and mineral resources minister Iqbal Hasan Mahmud Tuku briefed the meeting on the overall fuel oils situation, stating that the government was providing a subsidy of nearly Tk 200 crore a month to stabilise prices.

He, however, warned that certain unscrupulous groups were attempting to create an artificial shortage.

According to sources present at the meeting, road transport and bridges railways and shipping minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam briefed the meeting on a series of recent accidents that occurred during the Eid journeys.

He also outlined the measures already taken to investigate the causes of the accedents and prevent recurrences.

The minister discussed steps to strengthen railway safety to ensure that such incidents do not happen again in the future.

Citing accidents in roads, railways and waterways during the Eid journey, some MPs said that more precautionary measures were needed to reduce accidents during the Eid journeys.  

The meeting also discussed that international aid for the Rohingya was declining gradually.

After the meeting, home minister Salahuddin Ahmed told reporters that maintaining stable domestic fuel prices despite increases in the international market had been a significant achievement for the government, while noting that the situation had heightened the risk of fuel smuggling to neighbouring countries.

He said that the prime minister had instructed the authorities concerned to adopt stricter measures to prevent such smuggling particularly by strengthening surveillance in border and adjacent areas.

Salahuddin also said that following the completion of the government’s first 40 days in office, the prime minister had directed the Members of Parliament to actively inform the public about the levels of progress in implementing election pledges.

He said that lawmakers had been asked to play a more assertive role both on the streets and in parliament in highlighting the government’s development activities.

The home minister said that the MPs had been instructed to take an active part in discussions on the president’s address and to respond to challenges from opposition parties or other quarters through parliamentary means.

Chief whip Nurul Islam told reporters that the energy minister would deliver a strong message in today’s parliament session against hoarding and smuggling of fuel.

The chief whip said that there was no actual shortage of fuel, blaming certain groups for attempting to engineer a crisis.

He also blamed the role of the media for creating an artificial fuel oil crisis.

The chief whip said that the meeting began with the expression of condolences and a prayer following the death of the speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed’s wife Dilara Hafiz.

On parliamentary activities and new initiatives, he said that, for the first time in Bangladesh, the prime minister had instructed ministers to provide detailed briefings to MPs so that they could take necessary measures in their respective constituencies.

The chief whip said that such briefings would now be held on a monthly basis.

Responding to a question on the formation of parliamentary standing committees, the chief whip said that the matter had not been discussed in detail as the meeting was adjourned till Sunday noon.