'Ordinances necessitated by national requirements'

By Laxman Paudel,Bhairahawa, Jan. 24: Minister for Communication and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung has said that the government has introduced ordinances as they are essential for the country.

Minister Gurung, who is also the government spokesperson, said that the ordinances aimed to address the economic crisis faced by the nation and provide relief to its citizens, emphasising that these measures were a national necessity.

Minister Gurung made these remarks at a press conference organised by Press Chautari Nepal in Butwal on Thursday. 

"Introducing ordinances is not unconstitutional; it is also provisioned in the Constitution itself. The government is entitled to bring ordinances based on necessity," he claimed.

He urged critics to focus on the content of the ordinances rather than opposing them outright. Highlighting that the private sector has welcomed the ordinances, Minister Gurung dismissed the opposition of the ordinances from various political parties as baseless. 

He explained that prolonged delays in government offices had led to unresolved citizen issues, prompting the government to introduce an ordinance that mandates no files be kept pending for more than a week.

A few days ago, the government introduced an ordinance containing provisions such as a maximum of seven days for file forwarding in government offices, simplification of government operations with penalties for delays, and the use of the "Nagarik App" for service delivery.

Minister Gurung emphasised the government's commitment to establishing good governance and denied allegations of internal disputes within the ruling coalition. "There are no issues between Nepali Congress and CPN-UML. Others should refrain from politicising the matter," he said.

He further highlighted progress in infrastructure projects, citing the advancement of the Butwal-Narayangadh road section under the current government.

Regarding cooperative-related issues, Minister Gurung stated that the government has been working to address problems faced by cooperative victims by introducing a Cooperative Bill in the upcoming session. 

The bill aims to create a cooperative fund to ensure the return of depositors' savings. He added that the government was acting on the parliamentary special investigation committee's report to take action against those involved in cooperative fraud.

Meanwhile, Minister Gurung reiterated that constitutional amendments would only be made through national consensus. 

While inaugurating the 9th National Devdaha Industrial Trade Fair organised by Devdaha Trade Association in Rupandehi on Thurshday, Minister Gurung dismissed opposition's claims that the amendment was unnecessary propaganda.

Minister Gurung affirmed that federalism, secularism, proportional representation and inclusiveness would remain unchanged. He noted that constitutional amendments were aimed at achieving political stability.