MP Nemwang Criticizes Government Ordinance Rule and Squatter Evictions

Kathmandu. CPN (UML) MP Suhang Nemwang has stated that the government's governance through ordinances, neglecting parliament and parliamentary committees, is against democratic values and norms. 

Presenting his views in the meeting of the Law, Justice and Human Rights Committee under the House of Representatives, MP Nemwang raised questions about the government's working style and insensitivity in resolving the squatter problem. 

Speaking at the meeting, Nemwang questioned why the government chose the path of ordinances even when the parliament and parliamentary committees were fully active. He also drew serious attention to the government's recent move to remove squatters. 

Expressing dissatisfaction over the displacement of squatters in Kathmandu Valley and various other places without alternative arrangements and resettlement, he stated that despite the formation of 19 land commissions from BS 2047 to the present, the problem has not been resolved. He mentioned that the formation and dissolution of commissions have led to a waste of significant state investment and increased despair among landless citizens.

He informed that in his constituency, Ilam, citizens who have been residing for years do not have land ownership certificates and are landless, urging for a humane and just solution.

He said, 'What prevented the government from making or amending laws through debate in parliament, the supreme body of the people? Making ordinances a regular alternative in the name of ease of governance is the government's arbitrariness. This weakens parliamentary practice and constitutional dignity. In the context of the Supreme Court also ordering not to displace without alternative arrangements, the government should have been more sensitive. The state should be the guardian of the citizen who has no one and nothing the most.'

Arguing that bulldozing citizens' self-respect is not the role of a protective state, Nemwang also proposed that the committee investigate the actual situation of the affected areas. He concluded his remarks by proposing that the committee members themselves go to the field to understand the real pain and objective situation of the squatters and conduct an on-site inspection of holding centers and affected settlements.