PM likely to reshuffle cabinet by January

KATHMANDU, Dec 8: Government ministers have submitted details of their work since August 11 to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. According to the Prime Minister's Office, a review of the submitted details is currently underway.

Land Management Minister Ranjita Shrestha stated that, as per the Prime Minister's Office request, all work details from the Ministry have been submitted. The Prime Minister's Office has requested a comprehensive list of achievements from all ministers as the government approaches its one-year mark. The Council of Ministers and the Prime Minister's Office have initiated a review of the performance of all ministers.

Two weeks ago, the Council of Ministers and the Prime Minister's Office requested performance agreement evaluation forms from all ministries. The Prime Minister's Office reports that most ministries have submitted the performance forms online.

On August 11, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal signed a performance agreement with the ministers. Sources suggest that Prime Minister Dahal is dissatisfied with the performance of most ministers over the last four to five months.

According to sources from the Prime Minister's Office, the performance is being evaluated based on Prime Minister Dahal's preferences. To facilitate this evaluation, Dahal has formed an informal team within the Prime Minister's Office, led by Haribol Gajurel, the political advisor to the Prime Minister.

The source at the Prime Minister's Office stated, "Since the Prime Minister signed the performance agreement with the ministers, he is not satisfied with the work of most ministers." The performance agreement outlines the tasks for each ministry and aims to make all agencies accountable for achieving government objectives.

The performance agreement specifies tasks for each ministry and includes indicators for the expected results. The list is based on the government’s policies and programs, the budget speech, Prime Minister's speeches, and ministry instructions for the work to be done.

Previously, then-Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli signed a performance agreement with ministers on July 31, 2019, but there was no follow-up on whether the work was done according to the contract.

After Prime Minister Dahal signed a performance agreement with the ministers, the ministers also signed a similar agreement with the secretaries. The Prime Minister's Office now indicates that it not only made a performance agreement with ministers but is also actively evaluating it. Dahal is set to complete one year as Prime Minister on December 26.

The source adds, "After one year, Prime Minister Dahal aims to replace ministers who have not performed well and bring in new ones. However, it's not solely his decision. As part of a coalition government, the Prime Minister can only reshuffle ministers from the Maoist quota. He does not have the authority to change ministers from other parties."