The government has revived the personal secretary facility provided to members of the federal parliament. The decision was taken by the cabinet meeting on Tuesday to allow members of the House of Representatives and the National Assembly to have a personal secretary with the same salary as a branch officer.

The Sushila Karki-led government formed after the Gen-G movement had abolished the personal secretary facility for members of parliament on 12 Kartik 2082. The same facility was revived by the cabinet on the proposal of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. Law Minister Sobita Gautam has informed that the secretariat posts of the members of the federal parliament have been maintained as before by amending Schedule 2 of the Remuneration and Facilities of Members and Officers of the Federal Parliament Act, 2073.

Minister Gautam said that the decision was taken after the members of parliament repeatedly demanded in parliament and with the government that it was difficult to carry out legislative and political work due to the lack of a personal secretary. ‘The government revived the previous system because MPs needed a personal secretary to work effectively,’ she said. ‘The House of Representatives did not exist when the facility of a personal secretary was abolished for MPs, so why that decision was made is a matter for them (the then government leadership). The government has now taken this decision to create an environment for MPs to work.’

MPs said that it was difficult to carry out legislative and political activities including lawmaking without a personal secretary, and the issue was also raised in Parliament, so the previous system was revived. - Sobita Gautam , Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Following Tuesday’s decision by the Council of Ministers, the secretariats of the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly will have the facility of a deputy secretary or similar. Similarly, MPs will get the facility of one employee at the level of branch officer.

It is the practice of every MP to have a personal secretary like a branch officer to help them in determining their perspective by studying and researching the public service delivery, constituency concerns, and draft laws presented in Parliament. In the past, there was criticism that MPs appointed relatives to that position rather than qualified individuals. At least 48 MPs of the House of Representatives who came out of the 2079 elections had appointed their husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, nephews, brothers-in-law, nieces, and nephews as their personal secretaries. After opposition to that, there was a call for a procedure to appoint only qualified individuals for that position.

Ekram Giri, spokesperson for the Federal Parliament Secretariat, said that the government's decision has not yet been formally implemented in Parliament. MPs are demanding the facility of a personal secretary and he says that it is necessary. 'The right to have a personal secretary belongs to the members of the House.' The Secretariat has no say in what kind of person they hire, as long as they hire someone who has met the qualifications specified by law. If they hire someone who has met the qualifications specified by law, the Secretariat has no place to raise questions,' said Spokesperson Giri.

When MPs are involved in debates, discussions, and lawmaking, they need information from studies and research to support their arguments, but due to misuse, there has been a growing distaste for this. - Manohar Prasad Bhattarai , Former Secretary General, Parliament Secretariat He said that the qualifications specified by the Public Service Commission for branch officers should be implemented and appointed on their own. 'In the past, that qualification was not demanded.' No decision has been made on what to do in the future,' said Giri. 'If the decision of the Council of Ministers is implemented, we will take further action if the Secretariat comes to implement it or if the notice is published in the Gazette.'

Giri says that the Secretariat can do its homework to implement the Auditor General's report that mentions the need to specify the qualifications of a personal secretary. In the past, the salary of a personal secretary used to go to the MP's account. Some MPs used to receive that salary without appointing a personal secretary or by appointing a family member. According to Spokesperson Giri, in order to stop that trend, the Parliament Secretariat recently implemented a system to deposit salaries and benefits in the account of the personal secretary.

Former Secretary General of the Federal Parliament Secretariat Manohar Prasad Bhattarai said that lawmakers need a personal secretary, but the misuse of it should be stopped. 'In the past, this facility was misused, so there was a growing resentment towards it.' "If we take the option of delegating employees, the abuse in appointments can be stopped," she said. "MPs need assistants to present arguments and to study and research information while engaging in debates, discussions, and lawmaking."