KATHMANDU, Dec 3: The upcoming election for the executive board of the Nepal Olympic Committee (NOC) has courted controversy after the incumbent NOC president Jeevan Ram Shrestha proposed amending the committee’s statute to allow him to run for the coveted post for a third consecutive time. The NOC president is preparing to present the amendment proposal in the NOC general assembly scheduled for Tuesday against the Sports Act of Nepal which bars the president of any sporting body to run for election for the third time.
Clause 25 (1) of the statute of the NOC states that the President and the Secretary General of the committee are not eligible for re-election after two consecutive terms. The clause also states that the members of the executive board are not eligible for re-election if they complete 70 years of age at the time of being elected. The same clause specifies that the executive committees shall hold office for a term of four years.
The current president of the NOC Jeevan Ram Shrestha has been in office since 2015, securing a second term after beating his opponent Umesh Lal Shrestha by 17 against nine votes on September 6, 2019. Jeevan Ram Shrestha is seeking to run for a third term by proposing two amendments to Clause 25 (1) which will eradicate the limit of two consecutive terms for presidency of the committee as well as the age limit.
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Secretary General of the NOC Nilendra Shrestha informed Republica that NOC President Shrestha’s proposal for the amendment of the constitution has already been approved by a majority of the executive board during its last meeting. However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has sent an official letter to the NOC, raising concerns about possible foul play due to the timing of the amendment.
As per an excerpt of the letter, the IOC has stated, “We are of the opinion that the timing of your[President Shrestha] proposed changes (in particular those affecting the upcoming NOC election) may be questionable from a basic governance perspective, as the NOC statute review process should not be done in a rush and should be completed after your elections.”
NOC President Shrestha’s competitor in the 2019 election Umesh Lal Shrestha has questioned the timing of the amendment, echoing the IOC’s suggestion that the review process of the NOC’s statute should only take place after the election. The statute to limit the consecutive terms of presidency as well as the age limit was introduced under the presidency of Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan (2006 to 2015), when Umesh was serving as the vice-president.
“If the need for the amendment was not self-centered, the review process could have been started in the general assembly after the last election,” Umesh told Republica, “Even if it is a genuine amendment, it needs to be done in the general assembly after the upcoming election.”
General Secretary of NOC Nilendra Shrestha conceded that the timing of the amendment is not appropriate citing the concerns of the IOC, but stated that the process of the amendment will be carried out as per the NOC statute.
“It is true that the NOC’s needs to be corrected in accordance with the suggestion of the IOC,” he told Republica, “However, as the proposal has been approved by a majority of the executive board, it will have to be presented to the general assembly.”
