Govt slammed for making Shajahan as road committee head

block
UNB, Dhaka :
An opposition MP criticised the government in parliament on Monday for making former minister Shajahan Khan the head of a 15-member committee to make recommendations for curbing road  
accidents and restoring discipline in the transport sector.
While raising a supplementary question in the House, Jatiya Party MP Fakhrul Imam said whether it will be fruitful to control illegal drugs by ex-Awami League MP Abdur Rahman Bodi and ensure road safety by Shajahan Khan who sparked controversies in the past with his various comments.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, however, said former Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan was made chief of the committee as he is an experienced person in the sector.
“There had been huge controversies across the country after Shajahan Khan’s comment that a driver can be given licenece if he can differentiate between a cow and a goat. And his smile (over deaths of two students) also created a dangerous situation in the country. How much the government can keep its commitment by a person like him?” Imam questioned. Replying to the question, Quader said they convened an emergency meeting of National Road Safety Council on Sunday as the road safety situation has deteriorated recently for the rise in road accidents.
He said the Home Minister, transport sector experts and leaders, including columnist Syed Abdul Maksud and Ilias Kanchan, and police officials were present at the meeting.
Quader said, the 15-member committee was formed at the meeting to formulate recommendations to control the road accidents, and Shajahan Khan’s name was proposed as the head of it. “But no one, who was present at the meeting, opposed the proposal.”
“There’re 14 more members at the committee under him (Shajahan). We’ll not give importance to any person here…we’ll focus on the report to be made by all the committee members to bring back discipline in the transport sector, and then we’ll take the next course of action in this regard,” Quader said. He also said the report will be prepared by all the committee members, not by any individual. “His (Shajahan’s) name was proposed as he is an experienced person.”
The minister also hoped that a good report will be prepared by the committee.
On Sunday, the 15-member committee, headed by Shajahan Khan, was formed at the 26th meeting of National Road Safety Council held at the office of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA).
block