KATHMANDU, Aug 14: The government has expressed disagreement over the recommendation process for the Media Council chairperson outlined in the Media Council Bill presented in Parliament. As a result, the Bill, which was expected to be passed by the Committee for Legislation Management of the National Assembly on Tuesday, could not be approved.
The Bill is intended to amend and consolidate laws related to the Media Council. At the government's request, discussions on the bill have been postponed for a few days.
On Tuesday, during the committee meeting, Minister for Communications and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, argued that the provision in the Media Council Bill regarding the recommendation process for the Media Council chairperson, which involves a committee led by the Secretary of the Ministry of Communications, should not be altered.
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Section 6(2) of the bill states that for the appointment of the chairperson and members of the council, there shall be a three-member recommendation committee. This committee will be chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry, including one expert member appointed by the Government of Nepal, and the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
Lawmakers have proposed an amendment suggesting that the recommendation for appointments should be made by a committee chaired by either the Speaker or the Chairperson of the National Assembly. Media experts and stakeholders have also suggested that the committee should be chaired by the Speaker or the Chairperson of the National Assembly instead of the Secretary of the Ministry of Communications.
However, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, argued that since the government is responsible for the appointments, it is not appropriate to question the authority of the recommendation committee.
He remarked that it was a misunderstanding of the role of the Ministry's Secretary at a very basic level. Lawmakers warned that if the recommendation committee were chaired by the Ministry's Secretary, they would boycott the bill and therefore demanded that their concerns be addressed. In response, Minister Gurung stated that he would personally discuss the matter with experts and stakeholders before making a decision. He requested that the discussion on the bill be paused for a few days.
Stakeholders had proposed that the Media Council submit its annual report to the parliamentary committee. In response, Minister Gurung said, "It is not the role of the Parliament to carry out the work of the executive, so such a proposal is inappropriate." He added that since he and other lawmakers are supporters of democracy and the media, there is no need to be suspicious of their intentions.
The parliamentary committee has not been able to reach an agreement on Section 15 of the bill. There is no consensus on whether to appoint a new chairperson or allow the senior member to take over if the appointed chairperson of the council is accused of corruption.
The committee has been unable to reach an agreement on this issue because if the chairperson is cleared of corruption charges, they would be entitled to receive service benefits from the date of suspension. This would result in having two chairpersons simultaneously, leading to confusion about what to do with the newly appointed chairperson when the acquitted chairperson returns.
