A call for effective parliamentary functioning

The winter session of the federal parliament commenced from Monday. The third session of the House of Representatives and the 15th session of the National Assembly began with speaker of the House of Representatives Devraj Ghimire and Chairman of National Assembly Ganesh Prasad Timilsina welcoming the lawmakers to their respective sessions and reading out the letters regarding the convening of the parliament session received from the Office of the President and the Prime Minister’s Office. As the winter session of the parliament is also known as the bill session, the federal parliament has many tasks on its table, given that the previous session of the federal parliament achieved little in terms of passing new bills. The remarks of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal that they will focus more on passing as many bills as possible during this session is a move in the right direction. In his brief remarks to the media, Prime Minister Dahal said that he would focus on introducing and passing more bills in the current session of the parliament. Formulation of laws that protect the interest of the ordinary people is the primary function of the parliament. A fully functioning parliament is responsible to fulfill the people’s wishes and aspirations. Since the parliament in its previous session could not pass many bills that are vitally important for people, the onus lies on the lawmakers of both the houses to work seriously toward passing the long-pending bills. This will eventually send a message that our parliament is effective in deliberating the issues that are of importance to people.

There are a few things the parliament needs to do to make it effective. A fully functioning parliament should serve as a platform to foster an environment of respectful and productive dialogue. The role of lawmakers including the prime minister is very important to make the functioning of parliament effective. Lawmakers, who are supposed to represent their constituencies and work on behalf of the greater good of the country, should engage in respectful and productive dialogue with each other in order to effectively address the issues facing their constituencies and the country as a whole. They should work together to prioritize the needs and concerns of the people in parliament, become responsive to the needs and concerns of the people and prioritize policies and legislation that will have positive impacts on their lives. It is equally necessary for parliament to promote transparency and accountability in its decision-making processes and hold itself accountable to the people to whom it is meant to serve. The decisions parliament takes are important as they affect the lives of citizens.

As the winter session of the federal parliament begins, there are a number of crucial bills that are pending for approval. One of the important bills that remain on hold for long due to failure of the parliament to ratify is the Bill for the Amendment of the Investigation of Enforced Disappeared Persons, Truth and Reconciliation Commission Act (2014). The bill was earlier presented in the House of Representatives. But as the conflict victims have demanded a number of amendments, the bill has not progressed much, denying justice for the conflict victims. Lawmakers should feel the injustice the conflict victims have faced over the years and forge consensus to deliver justice to them. One of the beautiful aspects of democracy is that it provides space for compromise and consensus. Parliament that has representation of people with different values and political beliefs serves as a platform to work together and build consensus to effectively address complex challenges and find solutions that are in the best interest of the people and the country. As a newspaper, we urge both the parties and the government to present them in the same spirit in the parliament and act accordingly. We look forward to seeing the new session of the parliament passing as many bills as possible as promised by Prime Minister Dahal.