CPDCC's incomplete report enters CA

Kathmandu, Dec 10: Finally, the report of the Constitutional-Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee (CPDCC) has entered the full house of the Constituent Assembly, but without settling the disputes on the content of a new constitution.

            CPDCC Chairman Dr Baburam Bhatytarai presented the disputed report before the CA meeting on Wednesday.

            The prickly issues though discussed and debated in the state restructuring and power sharing committee, committee on determination on form of governance, and committee on judicial system, were submitted to the CA as it were.

            The CPDCC was time and again given the deadline to forge consensus on the prickly issues of the naming and numbering of provinces, form of governance and judiciary, but failed to make headway.

            Although some meetings of the CPDCC pondered over making the questionnaires for voting on the disputed issues, the lawmakers neither set the questionnaires nor created a basis for consensus.

The common concept proposes federalism with seven provinces, a constitutional President and directly-elected Prime Minister, the Federal Parliament comprising the House of Representatives and the National Assembly and an independent judiciary.

           

            The UCPN (Maoist) had forwarded a proposal for determining the federal structure based on the conclusion of the Committee on State Restructuring and Division of State Powers, a directly-elected President and constitution of the Council of Ministers led by the President, adopting the first-past the post and proportional electoral system for electing the lower House of Parliament and keeping a federal court along with a constitutional court.

           

            The RPP Nepal had presented a differing opinion proposing keeping an independent Hindu state, a form of governance with constitutional monarchy and directly elected Prime Minister, maintaining a strong autonomous local governance system, having the representation of 50 per cent directly elected and 50 per cent proportionally elected representatives in the lower House of Parliament and holding a referendum on the issues of secularism, republic and federalism.

The Madhesi Janadhikar Forum Nepal (Loktantrik), the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party, Sadbhavana Party, the Terai Madhes Sadbhavana Party, Rastriya Madhes Samajwadi Party, Sanghiya Sadbhavana Party and the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (Ganatantrik) had presented a common viewpoint on the main disputed topics.

            The Rastriya Janamorcha which has been protesting the federalism also stated that it agreed to the seven –province federal model presented by the Nepali Congress and the CPN (UML).

            Similarly, othjer parties as the CPN (ML), Nepal Pariwar Dal, the Nepali Janata Party, Nepal Majdoor Kisan Party, Rastriya Janamukti Party, Tharuhat Terai Party, Madhesi Janadhikar Forum Nepal, Akhanda Nepal Party, Samajbadi Janta Party, CPN United Party, Bahujan Shakti Party and CA member Ashok Rai  had also presented their separate concepts. RSS