Ethnicity-based federalism will lead to disintegration of the country: NWPP

Nepal Workers and Peasants Party (NWPP) Sunday released its election manifesto, proposing to turn the country into a 'socialist republic' with popularly elected President as the executive head.

The NWPP manifesto publicised at a news conference proposes two chambers of parliament at the centre - the lower house with elected representativesand the upper house with representatives from different ethnic groups - and legislative assembly in the provinces.

The manifesto says the President will be powerful enough to dissolve the provincial government as well as the state assembly and impose presidential rule. The President, who could be impeached in the parliament in case of gross misuse of power, should head the central government and take the commands of the national army.

According to the NWPP manifesto, parliamentarians cannot hold ministerial births.

It also proposes compulsory military training to the citizens. Radical land reform and free education up to higher secondary level are other proposals made by the NWPP in the manifesto.

Saying that delineation of federal units on the basis of ethnicity would lead to the disintegration of the country, the NWPP proposed that the existing 14 zones be recognised as federal units.

Speaking at the press conference, party chairman Narayan Man Bijukchhe said the nation would not be able to sustain lingual and ethnicity based federal division and that this could lead to disintegration in no time. nepalnews.com mk Mar 16 08