Stating that the relationship between the levels of government could not be based on the principles of co-operation, coexistence and coordination, the lawmakers called on the government to implement federalism effectively.
Participating in the discussion on the resolution on the implementation of federalism registered in the National Assembly, the lawmakers said that the three levels of government should be run according to the spirit of federalism. Participating in the discussion, MP Suresh Kumar Ale Magar said that the distribution of resources and power was the essence of federalism and added that the people had to revolt as the centralized power had monopolized resources and power.
MP Kamala Pant stressed on the need for federalism to bring rights to the doorsteps of the people. MP Madan Kumari Shah (Garima) pointed out the need for political commitment to make federalism people-oriented.
MP Bhairav Sundar Shrestha said that even though the constitution was promulgated by the Constituent Assembly (CA) saying that the rights of Singha Durbar would be transferred to the villages, there was concern that federalism would fall into a trap due to differences between the parties during the implementation of federalism. He said that the ruling party and the opposition should unite in the implementation of federalism.
MP Radheshyam Paswan said that everyone has a common responsibility to strengthen federalism. MP Hariram Chaudhary said that there were still weaknesses in the implementation of federalism including identity. MP Prakash Pantha said that the failure to give necessary laws to the federal, state and local levels has added a challenge to the implementation of federalism. MP Ram Chandra Rai said that the condition of the people has not changed even though the system has changed.
He said that the issue of inclusion has been overshadowed even though it is the essence of federalism. MP Maya Prasad Sharma said that the tendency of exploiting and buying from the people in the name of handing over the nose to the people has increased and urged to formulate a clear policy to end it.
MP Vimala Rai said that the federalism was established in the country with the objective of providing easy access to the services provided by the state but the centralized thinking of the people in high positions was seen as a challenge in its effective implementation.
Proponent of the resolution, Khim Lal Devkota, said that despite the expectation of peace, good governance, sustainable development and prosperity of the people with the change of centralized state system, the work could not be done accordingly. He said that the proposal was registered with the participation of the parliamentarians of the ruling and opposition parties with the objective of respecting the constitutional rights of the three levels of government.
"The resolution is aimed at creating an institutional structure that is parallel to the jurisdiction of the local level so that other levels of government do not create institutional structures, do not undermine the self-esteem of the states as per the intention of federalism, and create a working environment for the states according to the constitution," he said.
He said that 15 points have been included in the proposal to direct the government to implement federalism. The proposal calls for directing the government to activate the inter-level coordinating body, to make necessary legal arrangements to end duplication of work between the levels of government, to maintain coordination between the levels of government in policy, formulation and law formulation, and to build institutional structure based on authority and workload.
Similarly, in the name of conditional grants, to stop the distribution of small schemes and programs, to implement participatory planning system, to implement the provisions of the constitution as recommended by the National Natural Resources and Finance Commission. In order to meet the shortfall, to manage the remaining structures including the police for integration and transfer in the states, instructions have been demanded to do the necessary homework to make the number of ministries and ministers in the states efficient.
Jitendra Narayan Dev, a supporter of the proposal, said that there was no alternative to effective implementation of federalism for strong inter-party relations, strong financial federalism, functional administrative federalism, dynamism in law making and effectiveness of service delivery to the citizens. "There are some problems in the implementation of federalism. The goal of federalism is to provide good governance to the people, provide relief, facilities, reach the state from house to house and build a society based on social justice," he said.
Another supporter, Gopi Bahadur Achhami, said that federalism was being viewed with suspicion in order to enact laws on time as per the list of rights of the federal, state and local levels included in the constitution's schedule. Stating that federalism was brought to respect the feelings of the oppressed class, region, gender and community, he said that a united state was needed to address the feelings, sentiments, language and culture of all.
He said, "It should be made effective, the problems seen during the implementation of federalism should be solved." Nanda Chapai, a supporter of the proposal, said that the people have to think seriously about whether they have got the rights as per the spirit of federalism or not. "It is time to consider whether the rights gained from political change have reached the working class or not," he said.
Another supporter, Pramila Kumari, said it was important to strengthen federalism. Stating that federalism was achieved through people's war, Madhes movement, Tharu movement and other people's uprisings, he said that all parties should pay attention to strengthen federalism.
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