Speaker acting as President

Parliament’s Speaker Abdul Hamid is standing in for the ailing President in line with the Constitution until Mohammad Zillur Rahman fully recovers.

Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan on Thursday night told bdnews24.com: “The post of the President is not vacant. The Speaker is discharging his duties in his absence due to illness as per Article 54 of the Constitution.”

“A notification was issued today [Thursday] and is already in force,” he said.

The Article says, “If a vacancy occurs in the office of President or if the President is unable to discharge the functions of his office on account of absence, illness or any other cause the Speaker shall discharge those functions until a President is elected or until the President resumes the functions of his office, as the case may be.”

Meanwhile, a statement from the government said the condition of President Rahman has improved since he was admitted to the Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.

It said, “According to information received from Singapore [Thursday} afternoon, the President’s heart is functioning normally. Theere has been improvement in the treatment of lung infections. Also, his kidney is working properly following dialysis.”

Rahman’s son, Nazmul Hassan, who is with him in Singapore, told bdnews24.com: “The condition is slowly getting better. But we will be able to say something confidently after Sunday.”

The 85-year-old President has been undergoing treatment at the hospital’s ICU after he was air-lifted there on Mar 10.