Kathmandu, March 24: Newly elected lawmakers are preparing to enter Parliament after taking their oath of office. Yet they will not receive the facility of a personal secretary, at least for now, unless the Cabinet revises an earlier decision.
The government led by Sushila Karki had scrapped the provision for personal secretaries, commonly known as PAs, as part of a policy aimed at cutting expenses. The decision was taken on October 22. The new government will now decide if the arrangement stays or is restored.
The move removed the personal secretary facility for members of the Federal Parliament and provincial assemblies. Only the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Chairperson of the National Assembly were allowed to keep such staff. The Deputy Speaker, the Vice Chairperson of the National Assembly, and all lawmakers lost the benefit.
The issue will now fall on the incoming government. Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) senior leader Balen Shah, whose party has secured close to a two thirds majority in the House with 182 seats, is set to become prime minister on March 26.
Calls to restore the facility have already started. Officials at the Parliament Secretariat say lawmakers from different parties have informally raised the matter during consultations with the Secretariat.
At the time the decision was taken, then Speaker Devaraj Ghimire and National Assembly Chair Narayan Prasad Dahal, among other officials, had expressed dissatisfaction and repeatedly asked the government to reconsider. Despite that, the Parliament Secretariat implemented the decision, and personal secretaries serving National Assembly members lost their posts.
According to Parliament Secretariat spokesperson Eakram Giri, the Secretariat has stopped providing the service following the government’s directive.
“Except for the Speaker and the Chair of the National Assembly, other members do not have the facility of personal secretaries,” he said, adding that the Secretariat has already enforced the decision.
Lawmakers of the House of Representatives will also not receive the service under the current legal arrangement.
Before the government’s decision, the Federal Parliament Officials and Members’ Remuneration and Facilities Act, 2016 allowed lawmakers to hire one personal secretary at the level of a third class gazetted officer. The Cabinet decision had sparked debate on if an executive order could override a provision included in an act passed by Parliament.
Newly elected lawmakers have begun suggesting that such staff could be reintroduced under a different title. Some RSP lawmakers propose hiring them as researchers rather than personal secretaries.
One RSP lawmaker said bringing them back under the researcher category may be easier for the government. CPN UML lawmaker Guru Baral said MPs need research support so they can focus on policy making and legislative work. He also said such staff help maintain coordination between lawmakers and their constituencies.
Meanwhile, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) leader Gyanendra Shahi argued that if austerity is the goal, the government should cut facilities across the state system, from the president to local officials and top constitutional posts. Only then, he said, would the state treasury actually save money.
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