HLPC sets date with Regmi to settle poll law issues
As the deadline set by Chairman of the Interim Election Government Khil Raj Regmi for major parties to hammer out a deal on disputed issues of an electoral law ended on Friday, the parties in the High-level Political Committee ( HLPC ) have decided to meet Regmi on Saturday.
A meeting of the HLPC on Friday ended inconclusively as the parties failed to have agreement on two provisions in the electoral law—one percent threshold for seats under the proportional representation system and barring convicts from contesting the elections.
In Friday’s meeting, the Nepali Congress (NC) and the CPN-UML floated two alternatives to the threshold provision before the UCPN (Maoist) and the Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM).
According to a leader, the first alternative is to reduce the threshold to 0.9 percent, while secondly, the two parties proposed providing seats under the proportional electoral system to any party that secures one seat under the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) system and 0.7 percent of the total votes.
The Maoist party and the SLMM want the threshold removed altogether, while the NC and the UML are for keeping it. “Chiefs of the four major parties will sit with Chairman Regmi on Saturday to seek a solution to problems in promulgating the election ordinance,” NC General Secretary Krishna Prasad Sitaula said.
The ordinance to amend the Constituent Assembly Member Act-2008 states that the parties failing to secure one percent of the total votes under the FPTP system will be ineligible to secure seats under the proportional representation system. The ordinance, which was forwarded to the government by the Election Commission some three months ago, is still under consideration at the Cabinet due to the dispute among the major parties.
Sitaula said the parties may mandate the government to promulgate the ordinance on its own if no agreement is reached. “Elections should not be hampered just because of the ordinance,” said Sitaula.
While the Maoist and SLMM members in the HLPC on Friday pressed for authorising the government to do the needful, NC and UML members were reluctant. NC President Sushil Koirala remained adamant on retaining the threshold. UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal and senior leader Madhav Nepal are also in favour of the provision.The HLPC meeting, however, requested the government to begin the processes required in the endorsement of the ordinance as per the 25-point and 11-point political agreements. The 11-point deal among the parties signed on March 13 does not talk about the threshold.
Despite collective and one-on-one meetings among the HLPC members in New Baneshwor on Friday, the differences persisted as the parties stuck to their stances, according to leaders.
In the deliberations, the NC and the UML demanded that parties who field candidates less than 30 percent of the total seats in the FPTP system will not have to accommodate members of the marginalised community under the proportional representation system.
Regmi’s Press Advisor Bimal Gautam said the government will move ahead with the election law only after holding consultations with the parties.
“Nothing can be said about the ordinance until the government holds talks with the parties,” he said.
A meeting of the HLPC on Friday ended inconclusively as the parties failed to have agreement on two provisions in the electoral law—one percent threshold for seats under the proportional representation system and barring convicts from contesting the elections.
In Friday’s meeting, the Nepali Congress (NC) and the CPN-UML floated two alternatives to the threshold provision before the UCPN (Maoist) and the Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM).
According to a leader, the first alternative is to reduce the threshold to 0.9 percent, while secondly, the two parties proposed providing seats under the proportional electoral system to any party that secures one seat under the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) system and 0.7 percent of the total votes.
The Maoist party and the SLMM want the threshold removed altogether, while the NC and the UML are for keeping it. “Chiefs of the four major parties will sit with Chairman Regmi on Saturday to seek a solution to problems in promulgating the election ordinance,” NC General Secretary Krishna Prasad Sitaula said.
The ordinance to amend the Constituent Assembly Member Act-2008 states that the parties failing to secure one percent of the total votes under the FPTP system will be ineligible to secure seats under the proportional representation system. The ordinance, which was forwarded to the government by the Election Commission some three months ago, is still under consideration at the Cabinet due to the dispute among the major parties.
Sitaula said the parties may mandate the government to promulgate the ordinance on its own if no agreement is reached. “Elections should not be hampered just because of the ordinance,” said Sitaula.
While the Maoist and SLMM members in the HLPC on Friday pressed for authorising the government to do the needful, NC and UML members were reluctant. NC President Sushil Koirala remained adamant on retaining the threshold. UML Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal and senior leader Madhav Nepal are also in favour of the provision.The HLPC meeting, however, requested the government to begin the processes required in the endorsement of the ordinance as per the 25-point and 11-point political agreements. The 11-point deal among the parties signed on March 13 does not talk about the threshold.
Despite collective and one-on-one meetings among the HLPC members in New Baneshwor on Friday, the differences persisted as the parties stuck to their stances, according to leaders.
In the deliberations, the NC and the UML demanded that parties who field candidates less than 30 percent of the total seats in the FPTP system will not have to accommodate members of the marginalised community under the proportional representation system.
Regmi’s Press Advisor Bimal Gautam said the government will move ahead with the election law only after holding consultations with the parties.
“Nothing can be said about the ordinance until the government holds talks with the parties,” he said.
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