KATHMANDU, MAY 6
Top leaders of the ruling coalition urged their party cadres to vote for coalition leaders in the local election.
Addressing an election campaign programme here today, CPN-MC Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal said that all major political gains were made on the basis of the alliance between democratic and left forces, hence party cadres should not hesitate voting in favour of the coalition partners.
“Those who have been voting for sickle and hammer election symbol should now vote for tree symbol and vice versa,” Dahal said. He, however, said that there were some hardliners in the constituents of current coalition who were averse to the idea of voting for a different party symbol but their attitude would not help the cause of current coalition.
He said the fall of Panchayat system and signing of the comprehensive peace accord were possible only because of the unity between the democratic and communist forces.
Dahal said that he forged unity with the KP Sharma Oliled party in order to pursue the goals of socialism but within two weeks of the signing of unity deal he realised that Oli was not sincere to the deal. Dahal said Oli dissolved the House of Representatives and when he and Madhav Kumar Nepal mustered majority in the party and rendered Oli in minority.
Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba said that under the current constitution, no single party could win comfortable majority and hence entering a coalition politics was a compulsion now. He said his parties recently held National Convention and the Central Working Committee had decided to keep the current coalition intact and yet some leaders were speaking against poll alliance between the ruling coalition partners.
He said NC candidate for mayor of Kathmandu metropolis Sirjana Singh was a competent and able candidate and people should not dismiss her ability just because she is the wife of NC leader Prakash Man Singh. Deuba said that unity of communist and democratic forces had heralded great changes in the country and there was need for maintaining the current coalition.
Senior NC leader Ram Chandra Paudel said there were two coalitions in the country and the current ruling coalition was the progressive coalition countering the moves of another coalition that had regressive agenda. He said the ruling coalition should be further strengthened to protect democracy.
Chair of CPN (Unified Socialist) Madhav Kumar Nepal said that the current coalition was formed against the KP Sharma Oli government’s attempt to sabotage the constitution.
He said the candidates for the executive body of Kathmandu metropolis should pledge to better the infrastructure of the capital city. Nepal said that the candidates from coalition partners should assure the voters that they would ensure good governance and they would not indulge in corrupt behaviours.
Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal leader Rajendra Shrestha said that the danger of regression still lurked in the country.
He said the coalition partners should try to ensure good governance by honestly implementing federalism.
Rastriya Janamorcha leader Chitra Bahadur KC said that the coalition partners were hopeful of NC leader Sirjana Singh’s victory in the mayoral race. He said keeping the current coalition was the need of the hour. “It is not necessary for the partners of the ruling coalition to agree on all issues.
We can have differences on certain issues and yet we can be coalition partners,” KC said adding that his party opposed the Millennium Challenge Corporation deal while other partners endorsed the deal.
NC mayoral candidate for KMC Sirjana Singh said if she won the elections, she would develop Kathmandu as a city of major tourist attraction and also as a business hub.
A version of this article appears in the print on May 07, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.