KATHMANDU, JANUARY 21

Three board members of the Nepal Airlines Corporation (NAC) have complained the corporation staffers have blocked them from attending the board meetings.

In a letter addressed to Executive Chairman of the flag carrier, Ubaraj Adhikari and signed by NAC Managing Director Dim Prasad Poudel and board members Iswari Paudel and Fur Gelje Sherpa, they allege NAC staffers have been acting under the direction of Chairman Adhikari.

In the letter, the copies of which were also sent to the minister and secretary at Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, revenue secretary at the Ministry of Finance and the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the three board members have raised a number of concerns related to the proposals that were to be discussed during the board meeting yesterday, including the number of proposals.

'Three additional proposals had been added to the agenda of the previous meeting, with a total of 28 proposals to be discussed.

Why are so many proposals crammed into a single meeting? Why the haste to get them approved? And why are some board members barred from attending the meeting when such important issues being discussed?' they have asked.

They have said that any decision taken by the board by denying access to some members cannot be deemed legal. They have also warned that such actions are not only punishable by law but would also be counterproductive for the welfare and stability of the corporation.

Among the various concerns raised by the three board members include their reservations against the decision to continue flying the China-made planes after repairs. Various studies have concluded its operation is financially infeasible and the Ministry of Finance had also earlier directed that the planes be sold.

Another concern is regarding appointment of agents in some of the most profitable stations, such as Japan, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

Pointing at the possibilities of anomalies in procurement processes and employee appraisals, they have said approval of some of the proposals would 'clearly result in abuse of authority'.

It is to be noted that the NAC staffers had recently launched a protest against the three board members. They claim the officials are involved in operation of private airline and their participation in the NAC board would amount to a conflict of interest.

A version of this article appears in the print on January 22, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.