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VOL. 28, NO. 09, Nov 14 , 2008 (Kartik 29 2065 B.S.)
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Row Rages On
Even as the major parties have reached agreement to finalize CA rules, the row over army integration rages on
By SANJAYA DHAKAL
After months of dispute and dilly dallying, the major parties finally agreed to finalize the Constituent Assembly (CA) regulation paving the path for starting the process of writing new constitution.
But the continued row over the issue of army integration and fresh sabre-rattling by the opposition Nepali Congress (NC) leaders suggest that the process ahead will be anything but smooth.
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Ram Chandra Poudel: Twisting Elbows |
The committee formed to draft regulations for the Constituent Assembly (CA) finalized them on Sunday (Nov 9) evening.
The regulations were finalized after the much-disputed issue of whip was settled earlier by the four big parties who agreed to let the rules remain silent on that issue.
The regulations were finalized by the committee headed by Narayan Man Bijukchhe in its meeting held on Sunday evening in presence of CA chair Subas Nemwang.
The regulations also have provisions on forming various subject wise committees, methods of passing bills on constitution, ways of their authentication and so on.
The regulations will now be passed by the CA paving the way for starting the process of writing new constitution.
In absence of the regulation, the process of writing the constitution could not start even eight months after the CA election.
The major sticking point was the system of whip. However, the issue was settled when a few days ago, the big four parties – Maoists, Unified Marxist Leninist (UML), Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) and Nepali Congress (NC) – had agreed not to have any reference to system of party whip in the Constituent Assembly (CA) rules.
"We have decided against any reference toward whip. This means there will not be whip system," said Dinanath Sharma, chief whip of the Maoists.
Chief whip of opposition NC, Laxman Prasad Ghimire, had added that the parties will have their own provision regarding whip in their respective party statutes. "In party statutes, it will be clear on which matters the parties need to issue whip and on which matters the individual members will be allowed to exercise their conscience," he said.
Earlier, NC, Maoists and UML were in favor of whip system while MJF and other smaller parties, particularly Madhesi parties, favored allowing members to vote their conscience on important matters during constitution writing.
Meanwhile, the dispute over army integration has taken a new turn after the NC leaders threatened to launch strong opposition.
Linking the issue with what it calls as violation of previous agreements, the NC submitted nine-point memo to the Prime Minister demanding that the government implement the past agreements including immediate return of properties seized by the Maoists during the decade-long insurgency. Other demands in the memorandum include scrapping of the paramilitary structure of the Maoist youth wing, Young Communist League (YCL) and reconstitution of the army integration special committee on the basis of political consensus.
The NC's latest position solidified after Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bamdev Guatam, who heads the special committee, asserted that the panel will not be reconstituted.
Gautam said that even though the government is not ready to reconstitute the special committee, it would try to bring the NC into it because the involvement of the NC would be significant to ensure the army integration process goes smoothly. He also made it clear that the committee would go ahead with its work even if the NC refuses to join it.
VP's REMARKS
Dramatic Posture
After a long period of silence, vice president Parmananda Jha starts talking from all sides of his mouth
By SANJAYA DHAKAL
After he courted controversy by taking oath of office in Hindi language, vice president Parmananda Jha had remained silent for a long time.
But he made a dramatic departure from the silence last week when he fired salvos on all controversial subjects from special committee on army integration to provision of whip.
Jha went on to describe the special committee as 'unconstitutional'. "What do they mean by major parties?" he questioned, referring to what has been described as representation of "major parties" in the special committee.
"There is no constitutional definition of major parties. Since the interim constitution does not define "major parties", involvement of certain parties in the committee does not bear constitutionality," he said.
He also criticized the political parties for delaying the constitution writing process. Stating that new constitution should be drafted within the stipulated time, Jha said the parties have not focused their attention on this direction.
He said he would "speak up" if the constitution-making process got further delayed. He was speaking at a special interaction program organized by the Reporters Club in the capital Wednesday (Nov 5).
Jha also reiterated his discontent over lack of clear role for him. "People have expectations from the President and Vice President, so their roles should be well defined. That's what is missing [in the constitution]."
His comments drew sharp and scathing reaction not only from two coalition partners – Maoists and UML – but also from Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF), which nominated him for the position of vice president.
The Maoists and UML expressed strong objection against his remarks. The two parties concluded that the Vice President's views were "unconstitutional". They also decided to request Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal to talk with other parties and seek an explanation from Jha, who is a former judge of Supreme Court.
Foreign Minister Upendra Yadav, who is also the chief of the MJF, also censured Jha for his 'unwarranted remarks.'
Terming Jha's comments as personal, Yadav said that the special committee was indeed constitutional even though he admitted that there were lapses in determining which parties are major parties.
Despite the objections, VP Jha defended his position. Speaking to reporters in Biratnagar, VP Jha said he was "compelled to speak up" as the parties breached the interim constitution by speaking against federalism.
He said no one could impeach him. "For impeachment, someone has to point out that I violated the constitution, which I have not," he said.
He also insisted that the media and the parties misinterpreted his views in order to drag him into controversy.
Maintaining that the job of the President and the Vice President is to protect the constitution, Jha said he simply wanted to caution the parties [against violating the constitution].
He instead retorted saying the parties that are talking about impeachment deserve to be impeached.
Not cowed down by the fresh controversy, VP Jha also made comments regarding another 'hot' issue – the one related with the system of whip.
"By talking about putting in place the system of whip during constitution making, the parties are trying to infringe upon the fundamental rights of the CA members," he said.
"If again, we try to engage in the majority vs minority while writing new constitution, it may not be owned up by the people," he said.
