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Kathmandu Sunday February 03, 2002 Magh 21, 2058.
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Party leaders meet again
Hint tough days ahead for PM Deuba
Post Report
KATHMANDU, Feb 2: Top leaders of the four major national
parties met yet again on Saturday to discuss the much- talked about broad-based national
alliance to steer the nation through various problems, with one of the leaders warning
that the Sher Bahadur Deuba government might be toppled in the coming session of
parliament.
The meeting was held in the residence of former Prime
Minister and Chairman of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Surya Bahadur Thapa.
According to RPP sources, the meeting that began at 2 p.m. and was attended by Nepali
Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala, acting General Secretary of main opposition
CPN-UML, KP Oli and Vice President of the Nepal Sadbhawana Party (NSP), Badri Prasad
Mandal besides Thapa. NC’s Govind Raj Joshi, UML’s Bharat Mohan Adhikari, RPP’s
Kamal Thapa and NSP’s Rajendra Mahato also attended the more than one-and-half-hour
meeting.
The main focus of the second such meeting within a week, said
the sources, was "to evolve a broad national consensus to solve the Maoist problem
and other current problems". The meeting occurred while there are moves to topple the
government of Prime Minister Deuba by his own party lawmakers. They have already begun a
signature campaign to bring a no confidence motion in the parliament.
Giving the details of today’s meeting, UML’s Oli
revealed that the four parties principally agreed to work jointly to address the
"deteriorating condition of the nation’s economy" and other pressing
problems. The parties are also formulating a programme to address the issues, said Oli.
Quoting Koirala, Oli revealed that the NC president had said
in the meeting that he would discuss the need for joint working with opposition parties
with the government as well within his own party. "He had asked for some time for
this," Oli added. According to him, Koirala also said that he would come forward with
his party’s "problem-free" mandate.
The UML leader "clarified" that his party was not
interested in the current power struggle within the governing NC, but was concerned about
the mounting problems of the country.
He also sounded a warning to the government. "If the
Prime Minister does not come with convincing programmes and proposals addressing the
problems in the forthcoming 21st Session of parliament, we will spring a surprise. His
government might be toppled too."
When asked what the opposition wanted the government to do,
Oli said that the government had to reduce the number of ministers, control corruption and
abandon "unprogressive ways". "PM Deuba feels only his problems and is
oblivious of the problems facing the nation for which he thinks that the mobilising the
security forces is the only panacea."
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