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VOL. 28, NO. 14, Dec 12, 2008 (Mangsir 27 2065 B.S.)
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Nobody's Baby
The Constituent Assembly was constituted to draft a new constitution. However, it seems that making constitution is nobody's priority
By KESHAB POUDEL
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Koirala: Pressing for constitution |
"This government is not serious to draft a new constitution for Nepal. What the government wants is to continue in power and pursue its agenda of complete tyrannical rule," thundered former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala, before he was hospitalised in the Gangalal hospital on Sunday.
"I will not die till the formulation of new constitution."
"If Nepali Congress doesn't support this government, I will resign and go to the people," said prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. "It is impossible to make constitution without consensus among all major political parties."
These two statements of country's two powerful politicians indicate that the constitution making is yet to receive their priority. They speak all political jargons of new constitution but their real quest is power, say analysts.
Along with wooing Nepali Congress, prime minister Dahal also needs to satisfy his alliance partners as well as his colleagues within the party. Prime minister Dahal can pre-empt his enemy and former prime minister Koirala. Prime minister Dahal's challenges now are to survive from his party colleagues and his alliance partners who can sabotage him from within.
Despite his offer to lead a high level political coordination committee to oversee the government affairs, CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal declined to chair it. However, As the government is accountable to elected CA and president is there as a guardian of constitution, the formation of such committee, constitutional experts argue, is itself unconstitutional and violation of the spirit of accountable government.
As Nepal's internal players are competing for power and neighbours are competing for their security interests, elected representatives are dancing in constitution making drama with new rhetoric.
"The new constitution will be promulgated within two years," said Chairman of Constituent Assembly Subhas Chandra Nembang. "As we have already passed the
Constituent Assembly Regulation, the process will begin soon."
Chairman Nembang has asked all parties to nominate their representatives to various constitution drafting panels by mid December but bigger parties have not yet done so.
Altogether 14 committees- constitutional committees, 10 subject and 3 procedural committees- have been envisaged, which are expected to work in close harmony. As per the CA schedule, the committees have to be formed and their chairpersons elected by December 15. The new Constitution has to be framed within coming 81 weeks.
Seven months have already passed since the formation of Constituent Assembly, whose sole responsibility is to draft a new constitution for federal, democratic republic Nepal. But political parties which are more interested in power politics are yet to form a committee to draft a new constitution.
According to article 64 of Interim Constitution, unless otherwise dissolved by a resolution passed by the Constituent Assembly, the term of the Constituent Assembly shall be two years from the date of its first meeting. Provided that the term of the constituent Assembly may be extended for up to six months by a resolution of the Constituent Assembly, in the event that the task of drafting the constitution is not completed due to the proclamation of a state of emergency in the country.
As six months have already passed, there remains about one and half years to draft the new constitution. The articles of the interim constitution has made the constitution making so lengthy that every article needs to be ratified by two thirds of its members.
The article 70 of Interim Constitution states (1) the Constituent Assembly shall, in order to pass a bill relating to the constitution, vote on the Preamble and each article of such a bill introduced before it. Article 70 (2) says to vote according to clause (1) at least two-thirds of total members of the Constituent Assembly must be present and must pass the motion unanimously.
As all political actors are busy in power game, the constitution making is nobody's priority. In the last five decades, Nepal has already produced half a dozen constitutions but they were neither part of solution nor part of problems. Nepal's geo-political reality will have nothing to do with new constitution.
