Voting on PM’s confidence motion today

By Pallav Bhusal,Kathmandu, July 21: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is seeking a vote of confidence in the House of Representatives on Sunday.

Prime Minister Oli assumed office on July 14, 2024, after the formation of a national consensus coalition between CPN-UML and Nepali Congress on July 1, marked by a seven-point agreement.

The agreement between the two parties to establish a national consensus government stipulates that the government will first be led by UML chairman and Prime Minister Oli, followed by Nepali Congress President and former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

NC and CPN-UML enjoy a comfortable majority with 166 members combined in the 275-member House of Representatives, which assures PM Oli of securing the vote of confidence, needing the support of only 138 lawmakers. 

"CPN-UML has issued a whip to all its lawmakers, requiring their compulsory presence and vote of confidence for the Prime Minister," said Mahesh Kumar Bartaula, Chief Whip of CPN-UML. "The Prime Minister will also appeal to all other political parties to support him in obtaining the vote of confidence, paving the way for a stable political scenario and smooth functioning of the parliament," he added.

Bartaula expressed optimism about securing a two-thirds majority in the vote of confidence. "PM Oli is expected to personally call and ask lawmakers to support him with the vote of confidence," he said. The Nepali Congress leaders hold similar views. They argue that they formed an alliance with CPN-UML to uphold political stability and, therefore, will support PM Oli with their vote of confidence. 

"As the largest party in parliament, Nepali Congress, in coalition with CPN-UML, has spearheaded the formation of this national consensus government, initially entrusting leadership to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli," said NC lawmaker Min Bahadur Bishwakarma. "We have already finalised an agreement to grant a vote of confidence to PM Oli," he added. Bishwakarma also mentioned that Nepali Congress would appeal to other political parties to support PM Oli with their votes.

However, opposition parties, particularly CPN (Maoist Centre) and CPN (Unified Socialist), have decided against giving their vote of confidence to PM Oli.

"Our party, CPN (Maoist Centre), will not grant Prime Minister Oli a vote of confidence," said CPN (Maoist Centre) leader Hitraj Pandey. "The new coalition party has not been transparent regarding the seven-point agreement made between them, leaving other political parties in uncertainty," he added.

"PM Oli and the new coalition have also proposed amendments to the constitution without informing or involving other political parties. These actions are highly suspicious, and therefore, there is no justification for granting a vote of confidence to PM Oli," said Pandey. 

Similarly, CPN (Unified Socialist) party lawmaker and former Urban Development Minister Metmani Chaudhary affirmed that his party would also withhold from their vote of confidence to PM Oli.

"PM Oli opposes the parliamentary system and an inclusive constitution, seeking amendments excluding other political parties. Supporting him with a vote of confidence would imply complicity in undermining constitutional achievements," said Chaudhary. "Our party advocates for political stability and regular parliamentary proceedings, hence we cannot endorse PM Oli," he added.

Highlighting the ongoing political shift, the Rastriya Swatantra Party has also chosen to refrain from joining the present government.

"Our party is convening a parliamentary meeting at 11 AM today (Sunday) to decide whether to give a vote of confidence to PM Oli," stated Santosh Pariyar, lawmaker from the Rastriya Swatantra Party.

In the House of Representatives, Nepali Congress has 88 members, CPN-UML has 79, CPN (Maoist Centre) holds 32, Rastriya Swatantra Party has 20, and CPN (United Socialist) has 10 members.