The Speaker said, ”The House of Representatives has been dissolved, and the National Assembly is still there. However, the government is deciding how to make it difficult to function, how to block it, whether it is in accordance with the law or not.”
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Speaker Devraj Ghimire has said that the interim government formed for the purpose of holding elections is working to weaken the parliament.
Speaker Ghimire says that the government is weakening the parliamentary system by neglecting to fulfill its objectives.
The Speaker said that the work has been hampered by unilateral decisions such as staff reductions that make it difficult for parliamentarians and lawmakers to work. Speaking to reporters at Singha Durbar on Tuesday, Speaker Ghimire said that the government is weakening the parliament by going against the principle of separation of powers.
The government had reduced the number of personal and secretariat employees of the Speaker, National Assembly Speaker, Deputy Speaker, National Assembly Vice-President, and federal lawmakers. The Speaker accused the government of weakening the parliament, saying that the parliament is one of the three organs of the state, but the executive has reduced the staff unilaterally and without coordination. 'Basically, this government is trying to weaken the parliament. Knowingly or unknowingly, the government is trying to do that, which is a shame,' the Speaker said.
The Speaker said that even though the House of Representatives has been dissolved, the National Assembly, the permanent house of the federal parliament, remains in place, and the House of Representatives will also return after the upcoming elections or restoration. He said that the government has not taken into account the fact that the Speaker and Deputy Speaker remain in place as per the provisions of the constitution even though the House of Representatives has been dissolved. 'The House of Representatives has been dissolved, but the National Assembly exists.' However, the government is deciding how to make it difficult to function, how to block it whether it is in accordance with the law or not,' the Speaker said. 'This has happened against the system. In other words, it has happened against the progress of the nation.'
Speaker Ghimire said that he was not aware whether the government was consciously or unconsciously working to weaken the parliament and the parliamentary system. 'The three organs of the state are the executive, the legislature and the judiciary, and they have their own autonomy. "They have their own laws and jurisdictions, and the Constitution has also placed this in the principle of balance of power," the Speaker said, "but that does not mean that one should go against the other, but rather cooperate with each other."
The Ministry of Finance had cut the number of personal secretaries of parliamentarians and MPs. Speaker Ghimire also said that Finance Minister Rameshwor Khanal had spread confusion by stating in an interview that personal secretaries are a means of corruption. "The minister has been heard to have made statements like 'Personal secretaries are the means of corruption, getting rid of them will free the country from corruption.' MPs are weak, they cannot understand the whole matter, and we have made arrangements for representation in the National Assembly from disabled people," the Speaker said, "To support them, we have made arrangements for a personal secretary like an officer."
The Speaker also said that government ministers are creating a negative perception of the parliament by making irresponsible statements.
Speaker Ghimire, National Assembly Speaker Narayan Prasad Dahal, Deputy Speaker Indira Rana, and National Assembly Vice-President Bimala Ghimire met Prime Minister Sushila Karki on Monday to express their objections to the reduction in parliament staff. Parliament officials said that Prime Minister Karki expressed ignorance by saying that the decision was made by Finance Minister Khanal. Parliament officials said that when they spoke to Khanal on the phone, they received a response that the secretary of the Ministry of Law had made the decision.
