Good morning!
Here’s a quick summary of important, ignored and interesting stories from Wednesday to kickstart your Thursday.
Important
NCP, RJPN’s partnership in National Assembly elections
The Madhesh-centric Rastriya Janata Party Nepal has signed an agreement with the ruling Nepal Communist Party on Wednesday, according to which the two parties will jointly contest the January 23 National Assembly elections in Province 2. Four seats of the Upper House representing the province are being vacant and the two parties have divided equal seats between them. As the two parties jointly command the majority among provincial lawmakers and local government leaders, who cast their votes in the election, their candidates are most likely to win.
Meanwhile, the two parties also agreed to regularly meet to discuss contemporary political issues.
Dahal not yet decided about speaker’s candidate
Whereas media reports claim that hopefuls of the speaker’s position in the ruling NCP have expedited their lobbying, the party’s chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal says he has not made any decision about who should be the party’s candidate for the position vacant after Krishna Bahadur Mahara’s resignation two and half months ago.
“We still have five to six days [before the Parliament Secretariat will begin the election procedure], we can discuss the issue slowly,” a leader quotes Dahal as saying. Reports say Dahal wants Agni Sapkota for the position whereas another chairman of the party, KP Sharma Oli, wants Subas Chandra Nembang. Incumbent deputy speaker Shiva Maya Tumbahamphe is also in the fray.
Ignored
Public Service Commission likely to be authorised to design curricula for recruitments at security bodies
Though the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee in Parliament recently curtailed a right of the Public Service Commission over the transfer of the staff working at the commission, the panel on Wednesday made a decision of giving more power to the constitutional body.
So far, the commission was authorised to conduct recruitment examinations for security bodies and government-owned public utilities based on the curricula designed by the agencies themselves. But, the House panel has suggested that the commission be given a right to design the curricula also.
The committee is currently discussing the Public Service Commission Amendment Bill.
Gokarna Bista feels his dignity was hurt in Cabinet reshuffle
Ruling NCP’s standing committee member Gokarna Bista has lamented that Prime Minister Oli hurt his dignity while reshuffling the Cabinet last month. In spite of his impressive popularity, Bista was removed from the position of Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security.
Speaking at a meeting of the party’s standing committee on Wednesday, Bista said he would be ready to tender resignation if he was asked so before being removed.
Sitaula fails to bridge Deuba-Paudel gap
An influential leader of the Nepali Congress, Krishna Prasad Sitaula, failed in his effort to bridge the gap between party president Sher Bahadur Deuba and senior leader Ram Chandra Paudel. For the past few days, Sitaula had met leaders of the both sides in an attempt to find a solution, but he gave up his efforts on Wednesday. Instead, Sitaula himself was seen taking part in a meeting of Paudel faction.
Interesting
Writ demands permanent odd-even ration in Kathmandu Valley
Two advocates have moved the Supreme Court demanding that the government impose an odd-even ration on vehicles plying roads of the capital. Rita Karki and Shyam Kumar Shrestha have argued that this is the best solution to reduce the impacts of air pollution on the valley and its people.
Currently, the government occasionally restricts odd or even vehicles from plying to manage traffic whenever there is a visit of some foreign dignitaries or grand events.
