Speaker urges ministers to verify feasibility before making parliamentary commitments

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National Parliament Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad has admonished the Minister of State for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, Iqbal Hasan Mahmud, to exercise greater diligence and accountability when making pledges on the floor of the House. The Speaker’s remarks came during a session on Sunday following a contentious exchange regarding the government’s failure to deliver on a specific promise to restore gas supply to the Ashuganj Fertilizer Factory.

The dispute arose during a supplementary question session when opposition member Rumin Farhana challenged the ministry’s performance. Farhana asserted that rural areas in Bangladesh continue to suffer from electricity outages lasting between 10 and 12 hours daily. She further confronted Minister Mahmud regarding his failure to honor a commitment made during the previous parliamentary session, in which he had promised that gas supply to the Ashuganj facility would resume by May 1.

In his defense, Minister Mahmud denied the severity of the power crisis as described by Farhana and emphasized the difficult trade-offs the government faces. He explained that current domestic gas shortages have forced the ministry to prioritize power plants over industrial fertilizer production. The Minister maintained that his administration is working to improve the situation, noting that new drilling operations have commenced after a 17-year period of stagnation. He stated that supply to fertilizer factories would resume once domestic production increases.

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Following the Minister’s response, Speaker Ahmad intervened to remind him of his specific promise made to the legislature. The Speaker noted that the May 1 deadline had passed without the promised restoration of gas. He stressed that ministers must conduct thorough studies and review all technical, logistical, and feasibility aspects of their portfolios before committing to specific timelines in the national assembly. He urged the cabinet to adopt a more responsible approach to parliamentary pledges to maintain the integrity of the institution.