The NC Central Working Committee (CWC), the ultimate party body for taking a policy-level decision whether to form the new government, saw differences as one group of CWC members including Govinda Raj Joshi and Sujata Koirala argued that the party should not assume government leadership. [break]
They said it would be meaningless to stake claim to government leadership without ensuring a conducive environment for concluding the peace process and promulgating the new constitution.
On Tuesday, Acting President Koirala had told media persons in Nepalgunj that the NC will lead a new government as governments led by the UCPN (Maoist) and the CPN-UML had both failed to fulfill their responsibilities for concluding the ongoing peace process and writing a new constitution.
The differences on the issue of government leadership surfaced in discussions after CWC member Laxman Ghimire, who is also party chief whip, urged the party to take a formal decision whether to lead the new government and also pick a prime ministerial candidate during the CWC meeting on Wednesday.
“If the Nepali Congress is to form a new government under its leadership, the party should immediately take an official decision and start negotiations with other political parties,” a CWC member quoted Ghimire as saying.
There is slim chance of promulgating a new constitution and concluding the ongoing peace process without the participation of the Maoists in government. I have asked not to take a decision in haste on the issue relating to formation of a new government under NC leadership.
-- Sujata Koirala
-- Sujata Koirala
Other CWC members including Amod Prasad Upadhyaya had seconded Ghimire, saying that the party had failed to pick a prime ministerial candidate even though there are just five days left for the election of a new prime minister.
NC has failed to name its prime ministerial candidate amid a continuing row over whether the candidate should be picked as per the parliamentary party statute or the Parliamentary Party (PP) board´s decision. NC PP leader Ram Chandra Poudel and senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba are in the race for prime ministerial candidate.
“Two factions have appeared within the party on the issue of new government,” said a CWC member. “While one faction vehemently opposes becoming part of a new government another faction is in favor of forming a government under the party´s leadership." The UCPN(M) is sure to stay away from a NC-led government.
Though an overwhelming majority of CWC members are in favor of the NC becoming part of a new government they are averse to the idea of joining a government led by another party.
Talking to media persons after the meeting, CWC member Sujata Koirala said she suggested not to take a decision on government formation, bypassing the Maoists. “Nepali Congress has not done any homework on the formation of a majority government,” she said. “NC should not go into government for a few more months.”
Koirala argued that there is slim chance of promulgating a new constitution and concluding the ongoing peace process without the participation of the Maoists in government. “I have asked not to take a decision in haste on the issue relating to formation of a new government under NC leadership,” she said.
According to NC Spokesperson Arjun Narsingh KC, Wednesday´s meeting could not deliberate much on the issue of a new government and its leadership as the question of party active membership distribution took up much of the discussion.
NC has called its CWC meeting for Thursday to take an official decision whether to take the initiative to lead a new government under the party´s leadership and name a prime ministerial candidate from the party.
Rotational PM?
NC central member Chakra Prasad Bastola has proposed a unique formula for consensus, a sort of. He has proposed sharing premiership among the three major parties on rotational basis, if the parties do not agree on consensus government.
Bastola argued that sharing premiership among the three parties will ensure drafting of new constitution and concluding the peace process. He has proposed premiership for the three parties for two months each.
“Such a coalition will make it easier to promulgate new constitution as the three parties consist of two-third majority in the parliament,” he added.
He argued the NC-UML and Maoist-UML alliance have already failed and there is a slim chance of NC-Maoist alliance.
koshraj@myrepublica.com
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