Eager to hand over power to elected Govt: Nepal PM
Nepal’s interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki on Monday said she is eager to hand over responsibilities to a new Government that will be formed after the March 5 general elections. In her maiden address to the National Assembly after assuming the post, Karki, 73, expressed confidence that the election of the House of Representatives (HoR) would be held within the stipulated time in a free, fair and impartial environment.
Addressing the fifth meeting of the 19th session of the National Assembly, which began two weeks ago, she informed the members about the preparations for the HoR election, calling it one of the top priorities of the Government. She also spoke about her Government’s ongoing efforts in the areas of good governance.
Karki said that she assumed the office as prime minister not out of a desire for power but due to extraordinary circumstances, and expressed her eagerness to hand over responsibilities to the new Government that will be formed after the polls. She recalled that the interim Government was formed following the Gen Z movement of September 8 and 9, which led to the resignation of then-prime minister K P Sharma Oli.
Karki became the interim prime minister on September 12. The youth-led Gen Z group led violent protests against Oli’s Government over corruption and a ban on social media. The main responsibility of the caretaker Government formed after the Gen Z movement was to return the Himalayan nation to the constitutional track, she said, adding that for this, the Government is committed to conducting the March 5 election in a free, fair and fearless manner.
The blueprint for governance aimed at minimising corruption has reached its final stage, and the forthcoming ‘good conduct policy’ will play an important role in building Nepal as a corruption-free country, she said. Karki also congratulated the newly elected members of the National Assembly. Nepal’s around 18.9 million eligible voters will exercise their voting rights on March 5, to elect 165 HoR members through the direct voting system and 110 members through proportionate voting.
