Ruling Parties Clash Over Speaker, Ministry Reduction in Bagmati Province

Hetauda. A distance has started to grow between the two main ruling parties in the Bagmati Province; the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML. Differences in government operation, ministry work division, and the size of the upcoming budget have led to 'coldness' between the ruling parties.

At a time when the efficiency of the provincial government is being questioned, clashes have emerged among the ruling coalition parties regarding the appointment of the Speaker, budget program implementation, and the reduction of ministries. Specifically, disagreements have arisen over the claim to the vacant Speaker position and the reduction of ministries.

The performance of the provincial government has not been satisfactory, with Chief Minister Indra Bahadur Baniyan expressing dissatisfaction and the work performance evaluation of the ministers not being up to par.

According to a high-ranking official from the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers' Office, there has not been enough dialogue between the ruling parties. Both parties are actively pursuing their own agendas. He mentioned that the situation has reached a point where UML ministers had to hold separate meetings regarding the reduction of ministries. There has also been no agreement among the coalition parties on the appointment of the Speaker.

He said, 'The Chief Minister feels there is no coalition dynamic. He even had to say that he would dismiss everyone. After that incident, the distance between the parties seems to have increased,' he said.

Both Parties Eyeing the Speaker Position

There are claims among the parties regarding the appointment of the Speaker. Both Congress and UML are claiming the Speaker position for themselves. UML has insisted that if they don't get the Chief Minister position, the Speaker must be theirs. UML is prepared to proceed even if it means making the current Deputy Speaker, Apsara Chapagain, resign to secure the Speaker post. However, Congress argues that since the Deputy Speaker is from UML, they should get the vacant Speaker position. The dialogue between the two parties has become even more complicated after Congress proceeded with a decision from its parliamentary party on this matter. 

There was also a conflict between the ruling parties regarding the proposal to reduce ministries. The ruling parties, UML and Congress, were divided on the issue of maintaining 8 ministries in the province. UML was in favor of having 9 ministries and was dissatisfied with the division of work among the ministries, while Congress was in favor of having 8 ministries under any circumstances. The inability of the two parties to reach an agreement affected the Council of Ministers' meeting, and UML ministers participated in separate meetings. They made a decision on the proposal to reduce ministries in a factional style, holding meetings against Chief Minister Indra Bahadur Baniyan, who is leading the government.

8 Ministries to be Formed

These two parties were divided on the issue of reducing ministries. The Council of Ministers' meeting was postponed for a long time due to disagreements between UML and Congress ministers. The meeting, called for 3 PM on Tuesday, only started at 5:30 PM due to the lack of agreement between UML and Congress.

Before the meeting, 6 UML ministers held a separate discussion. Specifically, there was a disagreement between UML and Chief Minister Baniyan, the leader of the Congress parliamentary party, regarding the number of ministries to be maintained in the province and their responsibilities. Even before the Council of Ministers' meeting, UML ministers were demanding the formation of 9 ministries in the province. UML wanted a separate Ministry of Health and insisted that the Urban Development portfolio should not be merged with the Ministry of Water Supply.

According to a minister in the provincial government, UML ministers demanded the formation of 9 ministries with a separate Ministry of Health. They insisted on keeping Urban Development within the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure, which angered Chief Minister Baniyan. He was adamant about not having more than 8 ministries in the province.

Chief Minister Baniyan held an internal discussion in the office of Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Development, Dr. Dinesh Chandra Devkota, from UML, regarding this matter. When UML showed no signs of backing down, Chief Minister Baniyan threatened to dismiss all ministers. Stating that he was prepared even if the coalition changed, Chief Minister Baniyan maintained his stance of not forming more than 8 ministries.

Ultimately, UML ministers reportedly proposed a 'give and take' to Chief Minister Baniyan. After UML ministers presented a proposal to transfer the Urban Development portfolio from Water Supply to Physical Infrastructure and shift the Ministry of Health's responsibilities to Social Development, Chief Minister Baniyan moved forward with the proposal to reduce ministries.

According to a minister in the provincial government, UML ministers demanded the formation of 9 ministries with a separate Ministry of Health. They insisted on keeping Urban Development within the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure, which angered Chief Minister Baniyan. He was adamant about not having more than 8 ministries in the province.

With the decision to reduce the 14 ministries in the province to 8, 6 ministries will be merged into 8 ministries starting from July 1. According to the government's decision, the province will have the Chief Minister and the Office of the Council of Ministers, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Law and Cooperatives, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Planning, Ministry of Water Supply, Energy and Irrigation, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Forest and Environment, Ministry of Health and Social Development, and Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Labor and Transport.

Similar Disputes in Budget Formulation and Implementation

Recently, ministers from UML and other parties have expressed displeasure with Congress MP and Minister of Economic Affairs and Planning, Prabhat Tamang, in the government led by Chief Minister Baniyan, accusing him of obstructing budget program implementation. They allege that since taking office, Minister Tamang has been blocking budget program implementation and freezing expenditure headings in the budget information system.

According to a UML minister, Minister Tamang has also interfered in the selection of multi-year projects, inclusion of projects affected by disasters, and reallocation of funds for projects with small allocations. He stated that this issue has angered almost all ministers.

There has also been a lack of coordination between UML and Congress regarding the formulation of the upcoming year's budget. Finance Minister Tamang is preparing to present a budget of a maximum of 50 billion rupees by utilizing the province's overall resources. However, UML ministers appear to be pushing for a budget exceeding 60 billion rupees.

According to a UML minister, a budget exceeding 60 billion rupees needs to be presented considering the overall situation and condition of the province, but the budget ceiling has not yet been determined. He mentioned that the ministry ceilings have not been set due to the absence of secretaries at times or in the name of administrative restructuring. He stated that ministries have not been able to advance budget formulation work even though it is already May.