Kathmandu, September 16
An all-party mechanism will be formed to address issues arising from the disaster caused by the Bhotekoshi River floods in Rasuwa.
An all-party meeting held on Wednesday discussed forming the mechanism within the next seven days.
Rastriya Prajatantra Party lawmaker Gyanendra Shahi said the meeting discussed forming the all-party mechanism within seven days.
“There was discussion about forming an all-party mechanism within the next seven days. There was also discussion about investigating a parliamentary committee,” Shahi told reporters after the meeting.
According to Shahi, the meeting also discussed the possibility of introducing a “sunset law.”
A day after the devastating floods hit Rasuwa, Rastriya Swatantra Party Chairperson Rabi Lamichhane had proposed forming a high-level all-party mechanism for post-disaster rescue, relief and rehabilitation.
Following the devastating floods on August 26, Lamichhane had called an all-party meeting the next day. Top leaders from the Rastriya Swatantra Party, Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, Nepali Communist Party, Shram Sanskriti Party, Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Janata Samajbadi Party and Janamat Party attended the meeting.
At the meeting, Lamichhane proposed forming an all-party, parliamentary or broader multi-stakeholder committee to assist the government from rescue and relief to rehabilitation.
“Let us form an all-party, parliamentary or multi-stakeholder committee from rescue and relief to rehabilitation. This will make it easier for the government to make decisions,” he had said.
Other parties also agreed to Lamichhane’s proposal. The meeting issued a 10-point commitment that included the formation of a high-level all-party mechanism for long-term solutions.
The 10th point of the commitment stated, “We have agreed to form a parliamentary committee to continuously advise, assist and monitor post-disaster reconstruction, climate adaptation, timely reforms to the national disaster policy and the government’s activities.”
The proposed mechanism is expected to work not only during crises but also to build national consensus on disaster preparedness and sustainable development agendas and contribute to policy reforms.
The mechanism is now being formed accordingly. An all-party meeting held on September 1 had also agreed to form the mechanism, but it was not established.
Wednesday’s meeting set a seven-day deadline for its formation.
