Staff Correspondent, Dhaka
After the July uprising, the country has been left without any functional local government institutions. The Local Government Reform Commission believes that holding elections for all local government bodies simultaneously is now feasible.
According to the commission, this is an opportunity to create a fresh, transparent system. Otherwise, legal complications may arise as the tenure of several institutions ends before the national elections.
These recommendations were outlined in the preliminary report of the Local Government Reform Commission. The commission submitted a summary of its recommendations to the interim government on Wednesday.
The recommendations also mention that, although discussions about introducing a parliamentary system in local government have been ongoing for years, no concrete steps have been taken. Now, an opportunity has emerged.
A new ordinance could be enacted in March or April to integrate five institutions into two unified local government laws, enabling elections for all unions, upazilas, municipalities, city corporations, and district councils by June.
The commission aims to complete detailed work on this by April. However, this plan depends on consensus among the government, political parties, and the Election Commission regarding national elections.
On November 18, the interim government formed the Local Government Reform Commission, led by Professor Tofayel Ahmed, former chairman of the Public Administration Department at Chittagong University. Other members include Professor Dr Ferdous Arfina Osman from Dhaka University, former secretary AMM Nasir Uddin, Supreme Court lawyer Advocate Abdur Rahman, BISS director Dr Mahfuz Kabir, Women's Initiative Centre executive director Mashuda Khatun Shefali, Professor Dr Md Tarikul Islam from Jahangirnagar University, and a student representative.
Currently, there are five separate local government laws in the country (excluding the Chittagong Hill Tracts): Union Parishad Act, Upazila Parishad Act, District Council Act, Municipality Act, and City Corporation Act.
The commission has proposed consolidating these into two unified laws—one for rural local government (covering unions, upazilas, and districts) and another for urban local government (covering municipalities and city corporations). This will ensure structural consistency.
The commission suggests that these new laws would establish a standardized parliamentary model for all five local government bodies. As a result, elections could be held for all local government institutions once every five years, requiring a maximum of one and a half to two months. This would make the electoral process more cost-effective and time-efficient.
The commission has proposed draft laws that the interim government could enact through an ordinance or the next elected government could pass as formal legislation. The specific roles and services of local government institutions would remain distinct, but new regulations should be introduced to align their legislative, executive, and administrative functions. The expert-led commission could play a crucial role in this process and assist the relevant ministry.
Currently, in union councils, general members, women members, and chairpersons are elected directly. In upazila councils, the chairman, general vice-chairman, and women vice-chairman are elected from the same electoral area.
In many cases, their jurisdiction overlaps with that of parliamentary constituencies, leading to inevitable political conflicts. The commission recommends revising the electoral system and jurisdiction for upazilas.
Additionally, in district councils, the public has no voting rights. Since direct elections for district council chairpersons are impractical, ward members should be elected directly instead.
At present, neither districts nor upazilas have ward divisions. While upazilas technically have reserved seats for women, they are ineffective.
Therefore, the commission proposes introducing direct elections for ward members at the union, upazila, and district levels.
Regarding women's representation, the commission emphasizes that the Bangladeshi Constitution ensures equal rights for women in all spheres of life and allows for special measures to support women and marginalized communities.
Instead of the existing reserved women’s seats, the commission proposes a rotational system where one-third of all local government wards would be reserved for women in each election.
Under this system, women elected to reserved seats would automatically become part of the executive councils of local government institutions.
By implementing these reforms, the commission aims to create a more efficient, transparent, and representative local government system in Bangladesh.
