Members of PM’s secretariat quit en masse

Kathmandu, November 10

All the members of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s private secretariat, including advisers, tendered their resignation to the prime minister yesterday. The resignations will come into effect on November 17.

A member of the PM’s private secretariat told THT that the resignations were tendered to help the PM form a new team. A source added that the PM had sought their resignations.

Meanwhile, PM’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Rajan Bhattarai tweeted that he was departing for the US to attend a meeting between Asian political leaders and US Congressmen on November 13 and 14 in Capital Hill, Washington, DC.

He added that the meeting would focus on trade and energy issues.

One of the PM’s advisers told THT that the PM wanted to send a message to his Cabinet members to voluntarily quit so that he could form a new Cabinet to make the government’s performance more effective.

“The PM’s main target is Cabinet members. He wants them to resign,” he said.

Another source said the PM was not satisfied with the performance of some of his Cabinet members but he didn’t want to remove them from the Cabinet as that could adversely affect their public image. “I think the PM will call a Cabinet meeting and tell the ministers to resign en masse so that he could form a new Cabinet. Some of the current members of the Cabinet could again be inducted in the new Cabinet,” he said.

He added that Cabinet members would deem it appropriate to tender their resignation rather than suffer the ignominy of being sacked for inefficiency’.

An NCP leader who is close to party Co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal added that the PM was thinking of reshuffling his Cabinet and he had not taken any formal decision yet. “The PM has been talking about reshuffling his Cabinet. I think he will soon ask Cabinet ministers to resign en masse,” the source added.

Spokesperson for the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Narayan Kaji Shrestha told THT that the PM’s public speeches hinted that he wanted to reshuffle the Cabinet to improve its performance but the PM has not taken any formal decision so far. When asked if the PM wanted to reshuffle the Cabinet, deputy parliamentary party leader of the NCP Subas Chandra Nembang said reshuffling the Cabinet was the PM’s prerogative and he could do it anytime.

Who all resigned

• PM’s Chief Adviser Bishnu Rimal
• PM’s Press Adviser Kundan Aryal
• PM’s Foreign Affairs Adviser Rajan Bhattarai
• PM’s Public Relations Adviser Achyut Mainali
• PM’s Press Coordinator Chetan Adhikari
• Media Expert Ram Sharan Bajgai

 

The post Members of PM’s secretariat quit en masse appeared first on The Himalayan Times.

from The Himalayan Times https://ift.tt/34PGSL6
via IFTTT