Sub-panel formed to suggest on proposals

Kathmandu, August 16

Speaker Onsari Gharti Magar today formed a nine-member sub-committee to study and suggest how to proceed with some proposals of public importance introduced by some lawmakers in the Parliament.

She also instructed chairpersons of all 14 thematic committees and Legislation Committee of the Parliament to come up with written suggestions to enhance the efficiency of those committees while selecting issues for discussions, giving directives to government bodies and monitoring the implementation status of instructions, according to the Speaker’s spokesperson Babin Sharma.

The nine-member panel includes Min Bahadur BK and Ram Krishna Yadav of Nepali Congress; Gokul Gharti and Rabindra Adhikari of CPN UML; Sita Nepali of CPN-Maoist Centre;  Kunti Kumari Shahi of Rastriya Prajatantra Party-Nepal, Dil Bahadur Nepali of Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal; Gita Rana Chhetri of Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum-Democratic and Rajya Laxmi Shrestha of Rastriya Prajatantra Party.

The Speaker formed the sub-panel after holding consultations with chairpersons of those committees and chief whips of political parties at her office in Singha Durbar today.

“The panel chairpersons have asked to recommend the Speaker whether to proceed with the proposals introduced in the Parliament. By assessing the sub-panel’s recommendations, the Speaker will decide whether to proceed with the proposals,” said Sharma.

Currently, there are five proposals including discussing the issue of impeachment of Chief Commissioner of the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority registered by three lawmakers Gagan Thapa, Dhana Raj Gurung and Shyam Shrestha and the issue of border encroachment.

NC Chief Whip Chin Kaji Shrestha said, “There are some technical issues that should be settled before taking them for discussions. Suppose, if the issue of impeachment cannot be decided from the motion of public importance and it needs a separate motion for decision, then should the current motion be moved ahead.

What to do if a proposal is sub-judiced and under consideration in any House panel? The sub-committee formed today will suggest on all such technical issues.”

Chairpersons of House panels had opined about the problems they face, including lack of resources to inspect government activities, how to make the panels’ deliberations and decision making process systematic and the problem of low participation of panel members in meetings, according to Shrestha.

Speaker Gharti drew the attention of chairpersons to the unmanaged expenses of panels for breakfast, snacks and lunches while organising their meetings.

Activities of the House panels have also been controversial time and again for encroaching upon one another’s jurisdictions, giving impractical instructions to the government and giving instructions that overlap with the instructions of another committee. The sub-panel will also look into these matters, according to Shrestha.

The Speaker also instructed the chief whips of parties to come up with concrete views on dealing with low participation of lawmakers in committee meetings.