Kathmandu, October 17:

The two-day national-level cadres’ meet of the ruling CPN-UML ended today, agreeing that the party should be guided by people’s multiparty democracy propounded by legendary leader Madan Kumar Bhandari. The meet reinforced the need to re-energise the party from ideological and organisational standpoint in view of the upcoming eighth general convention.

Heeding suggestions coming from party cadres, the meet decided to hold the convention in Butwal instead of the capital. The convention will be held from February 16 to 21.

The meeting constituted a 61-member main convention organising committee headed by party standing committee member Bharat Mohan Adhikari.

Eleven sub-committees have been formed to hold the convention.

The meeting, which was called to solicit feedback from party cadres for the upcoming convention, approved general secretary Jhala Nath Khanal’s political report with suggestions on several key issues, including the election process and organisational system.

Chief of the party’s publicity department Ishwor Pokharel told mediapersons that the report had analysed political developments that had occurred since the seventh general convention, which was held six years ago and causes of setback in the CA election. The report has also stressed the need to expose the Maoist’s Left extremism, Pokharel said.

With a view to democratising the party in the changed political context, Pokharel said the party would adopt presidential system and there would be multiple positions in all party committees besides general secretary and secretary at the central, zonal and district levels.

Up till now, general secretary is the most powerful position in the communist party, but

this will change after the eighth convention.

“Feedback of the meeting is that a person holding the chief executive post will not hold that position for more than two terms and all representatives for the general convention will have to be elected from the grass-roots level,” he said.

With this provision, even central committee members should get elected to be convention representatives. The existing party statute would be revamped to ensure this provision.

Party cadres also suggested that the floor of general convention should elect central office-bearers, and other central committee members should be elected region-wise.

The UML cadres’ meeting agreed to elect at least one-third members of all party committees from young generation and make such committees inclusive.