PM failing in twin tasks: UML leaders

KATHMANDU, Sept 24: CPN- UML leaders on Saturday have criticized the current government for not focusing on constitution writing and concluding the peace proces and wasting time on trivial issues.



CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal has said the present government will fail to take ahead the twin tasks as it was formed on a shaky ground. [break]



He however clarified that the UML would help the Maoists to form a consensus government if the four-point deal reached between the UCPN (Maoist) and Madhes-based parties is scrapped.



"The Bhattarai-headed government can´t complete the peace process as it is an opportunist coalition formed on a shaky ground," he said. "It must be transformed into a consensus government if the peace process is to be concluded."



Khanal told reporters in Kaski that the Maoist leadership has failed even in convening multilateral meetings among the major political parties on resolving the contentious issues.



UML standing committee member KP Oli criticized the prime minister for reaching an agreement on making group entry of Madhesi youths in the Nepal Army. "While the parties have failed even to resolve the issue of integrating former Maoist combatants into the army, the Maoist-Madhesi deal on recruiting 10,000 Madhesi youths in the national army is acceptable," he told reporters in Bhaktapur.



Meanwhile UML leader Pradeep Gyawali said on Saturday that the early days of the new government indicated that the major tasks of writing new constitution and concluding the peace process is not going to make tangible progress in the days to come.



"There was high expectations in the people that Bhattarai would do a lot, but his three weeks have showed that his tenure might end without making any tangible progress," Gyawali said at a press meet in Butwal.



Gyawali said the intra-party feud deepening within the ruling UCPN (Maoist), the unholy alliance of the ruling partners and the Maoist intention to bypass Nepali Congress and UML wouldn´t help the government accomplish the twin tasks.



He termed the government decision to handover keys of arms containers simply a publicity stunt.



"The prime minister claimed that the government will do a lot within 45 days but there hasn´t been any tangible achievement in the last 25 days," he said. "What progress can we expect in the remaining 20 days?"

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