Kathmandu, Nepal, february 2, 2022: The proposed $500 million Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Nepal Compact Project has shaken up the Nepali politics including the five party alliance of the incumbent government- Nepali Congress (NC), CPN (Maoist Center), CPN (United Socialist), Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) and the Rastriya Janamorcha- after Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba come up with the firm stand to endorse project from the ongoing session of the federal parliament.
As Prime Minister Deuba, who is also the president of the ruling head Nepali Congress (NC), sought support from the ruling allies to endorse the MCC from the ongoing session of the parliament, the major coalition partners- Maoist Center and the United Socialist are in dilemma to take the decision. The major two communist parties have been hesitating to stand in favor of the MCC fearing that their so-called nationalist image would be jeopardized and people would not support in the proposed local level elections.
Though the ruling allies have already decided to hold the local level elections by mid-June, the government has yet to fix the date, thanks to the differences among the ruling allies over the issue of endorsing the MCC from ongoing session of the parliament. According to a reliable source close to the government, the two communist parties have been forwarding a condition to differ local level elections by six months as per the article 225 of the constitution if government head intends to endorse the MCC from the ongoing session of the parliament.
Prime Minister Deuba, However, has been challenging the two communist parties to endorse the MCC from the support of the main opposition CPN UML if they hinder in the process to ratify the MCC from the parliament. Responding to the concerns of the US government, it is supposed that Prime Minister Deuba would have already pledged before the US government to ratify the MCC Compact from the ongoing session of the parliament.
Considering to the firms stand of the Prime Minister Deuba, the leaders of the Maoist Centre and the Unified Socialist have begun to say that the row over the issue of MCC would not affect the coalition government. It is said that the two communist parties have made a mindset that they would accept everything including the timely election and endorsement of the MCC if the Nepali Congress agrees to give hand to forge electoral alliance in the future elections.
Since then CPN UML chairman KP Sharma Oli Sharma led government had registered MCC proposal it in the parliament on July 15, 2019, it is believed that the UML would not backtrack from its decision. However, the main opposition UML has remained mum over the issue of endorsing the MCC from the parliament and waiting response from the ruling alliance believing that differences among the ruling allies would jeopardize possible electoral alliance among the ruling allies.
The ruling allies had formed a three member task force on December 19 comprising leaders from the ruling allies- Jhala Nath Khanal from the United Socialist, Narayan Kaji Shrestha from the Maoist Center and Gyanendra Bahadur Karki from the Nepali Congress. However, the task force has recommended nothing to the government yet, thanks to the differences among the taskforce members. It is said that Khanal and Shrestha have a demand that some amendments are required even to face save to agree to endorse the MCC from the parliament.
Then joint-secretary at the Ministry of Finance Baikuntha Aryal and MCC’s acting Chief Executive Jonathan Nash had signed in the agreement when Karki was finance minister under the Prime Membership of Deuba in September 2017 to constrict hydroelectricity project and roads. Nepal was chosen for the MCC project after fulfilling some criteria through open competition.
The constant controversies among the political level have courted further confusion as well as controversy not only over the issue of endorsing the MCC project from the parliament but also to receive other assistance provided by the US government. The US government has already warned that it would not wait Nepal for an indefinite period stating that the projected would be diverted into other countries if Nepal accepts without any condition.
