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Lawmaker and CPN-UML Secretary Yogesh Bhattarai has called for giving full shape to the parliamentary committees.

The UML will not participate in the upcoming meetings of the committees if the parliamentary committees are not given full shape, said Bhattarai, speaking in a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives today.

Stating that the parliament and the parliamentary committees have not been able to run as per the parliamentary process, he claimed that the committees have not got full shape due to the dispute among the ruling coalition partners.

"The opposition does not want to shoulder the burden of the problem caused due to the ruling coalition. Probably we will not attend any of the meeting of the committees hereafter if the committees are not given full shape as per the parliamentary process. We want to inform the committee presidents beforehand," lawmaker Bhattarai said.

He argued that the parliament and the Constitution have not become the symbol of national unity as the parliament has not been run in an effective manner.

"The main opposition UML has not sought any share in the quotas. However, there is a practice that the presidency of the PAC is given to the main opposition party. If the ruling coalition does not even want to give this to us, we do not need it. Nevertheless, the parliamentary process should be followed in moving ahead the formation of the committees," the main opposition party secretary reiterated.

He further added it is not good that the committee president has not been elected even three months into the committee starting its work.

Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Chair Rajendra Lingden and lawmaker from the Rastriya Swatantra Party Manish Jha also echoed Bhattarai saying the parliamentary committees be given full shape at the earliest.

Arjun Narsingh KC of the Nepali Congress who was presiding over the meeting in the capacity as the senior-most (by age) lawmaker of the PAC, said the committee's serious attention was drawn to this topic.

The PAC meeting today passed the Public Account Committee Operation Procedures, 2080. The meeting also discussed the draft of this Operation Procedures.

A sub-committee has been constituted for preparing the draft of the Procedures. Rajan KC is its coordinator.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has said the government's campaign against corruption, misconducts and smuggling is not a political stunt and guided by the feeling of impulse.

In his address to the announcement of a 'front' of students’ unions close to the parties in the recently formed Socialist Front here today, the Prime Minister said," The government has launched a campaign against those misappropriating public property and engaging in human trafficking. This move will not end here, but will continue until it is won. This battle is not driven by any impulse or a political maneuver; rather it is intended at serving the collective interest of the Nepali citizens."

During the program, the Prime Minister said many cases of corruption would be open in the days to come.  He said that the government's sole efforts are not enough to curb corruption, instead mass support and cooperation are vital for the same. "We require the support of the Socialist Front.  We will win this battle if mass support is ensured. "

The Prime Minister took time to say that the government would be presenting the Federal Education Bill to the House on Tuesday.

The document will be passed by the Cabinet before taking it to the House, according to the Prime Minister who believed that the bill would find a road map for improvements in the education sector.

The Prime Minister added that various posts lying vacant at the Tribhuvan University Education Commission and other universities would be fulfilled soon.

Search is on for High Level Education Commission's report

PM Dahal said that a search is on for the report of the High-Level Education Commission. The report prepared during the term of the government led by the then Nepal Communist Party has not been made public.

He said that although the majority members of the then party were ready to make the report public and implement it immediately, the then Prime Minister was not ready to do so.  PM Dahal added that a search has been started for finding that report.

According to him, a consistent search was initiated for tracking down the report after he became the Prime Minister, but it has not been found. He informed that he also had concerns with the then Education Minister Giriraj Mani Pokharel about the report and Pokharel told him that he submitted it without even keeping its single copy with him.

Stating that a big political change was brought through peaceful and armed struggle and the education, health, employment and the right to food have been enshrined as the basic rights in the Constitution, Prime Minister Dahal reiterated that the socialism that is provided for in the Constitution would be implemented in practice. 

He said that the government is taking ahead some important work with the preparation of installing the embryo of socialism in the education sector.  

Stating that several attempts were made to create confusions and bring about misunderstanding among the leaders also even after the formation of the Socialist Front, PM Dahal said the leadership is ready to move ahead by defeating all these conspiracies.

The Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives has drawn the attention of the government to form a high-level probe committee to investigate the 100 kg gold smuggling case.

A meeting of the Accounts Committee held on Sunday demanded formation of a high-level probe committee to carry out a fair investigation into the 100 kg gold smuggling scam.

Nepali Congress lawmaker Arjun Narsingh KC, who chaired the committee as a senior citizen, drew the attention of the government to form a high-level probe committee to launch an independent investigation into the gold smuggling case.

In the meeting, CPN-UML lawmaker Yogesh Bhattarai said that a high-level probe committee should be formed to investigate the latest  gold smuggling case.

Bhattarai, also the secretary of the UML, said that the Home Minister and the Finance Minister should also be investigated.

The UML has been saying that the gold could not be passed from the Tribhuvan International Airport without the involvement of ruling coalition leaders.

So far, police have arrested 18 persons in connection with the gold smuggling case.

On July 19, the Revenue Investigation Department had confiscated around 100 kg of gold concealed inside brake shoes ‘imported’ from Hong Kong in the name of Ready Traders from Sinamangal.

Out of 753 local governments, 33, comprising 11 municipalities and 22 rural municipalities, have failed to submit their budget for the fiscal year 2023/24 on time, as mandated by the Local Government Operation Act, 2017. On a positive note, Sudurpaschim province achieved a 100 percent record this year, with all 88 local units passing their budgets on time. However, Madhes province continues to struggle, with 24 out of 136 governments failing to meet the deadline.

The primary reason for the budget delays is disagreement between municipal heads and their deputies. This has been a recurring issue, with mayors and chairpersons blaming their deputies and vice-versa. Additionally, political pressure and lack of a majority in some executive committees and councils also contributed to the delays.

To address this problem, experts and officials suggest penalties such as redirecting reduced subsidies to neighboring municipalities or introducing alternative forms of punishment. However, some economists oppose this approach, arguing that the public should not suffer the consequences of corrupt actions by representatives.

Currently, the only repercussion for delayed budget submissions is receiving reduced subsidies from the National Natural Resources and Fiscal Commission. The allocation of subsidies is based on performance, with timely budget presentation and approval carrying significant weightage.

It is crucial to find effective solutions to this issue, as untimely budget allocation negatively impacts local employment, income, and overall economic growth of the country. Efforts are underway to guide and train local representatives in adhering to a fixed set of protocols, with a ‘learning by doing’ approach showing some improvement in timely budget submissions over the years.

Full story here.