The deal was supposed to be signed by Monday, but that did not happen after Koirala declined to approve the insignias that are required to finalize the design of MRP, according to MoFA officials. Koirala was not available to comment on the issue.[break]
With this move by Koirala, who is against giving the tender to the French security printer, the fate of the MRP tender now hangs in balance mainly on three grounds, according to MoFA officials.
First, the ministry can sign an agreement with the French security printer even without the finalization of the insignia. But the latter will not be able to deliver the first consignment of passports within 70 days as required by the tender document and failing to meet the deadline is subject to punishment in fine. In this situation, the company with global reputation is unlikely to enter into such an agreement.
Second, if Koirala continues to stick to her decision -- which is more likely given her opposition to the tender process from the beginning -- the ministry will have to wait till the new foreign minister assumes office. And it is uncertain when the new government will be formed, given the present political stalemate over electing a new prime minister.
Finally, there is no guarantee that the new minister will approve the insignia.
According to officials, Koirala has already approved security features of the passport.
“If the minister does not cooperate on urgent issues like introducing MRPs, what can we do?” an MoFA official rued.
According to the revised deadline, Nepal is required to introduce machine readable passport by January 1, 2011.
Related story
Fate of MCC agreement hangs in the balance
