Former Nepal Army (NA) chief Gaurav Shumsher Rana has claimed that the army has been handed over the responsibility of bringing medical supplies to evade investigation.
"Many have suspected that the army was given the responsibility to avoid investigation of the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA). This has been proved once again," Rana told Setopati. "Why army when there are other bodies to procure medicines? Have other government ministries become incapacitated?"
He has claimed that why the army has been handed over the responsibility has become sort of open secret. "Handing over the responsibility of bringing medicines to the army cannot be defended with any fact or argument."
He argued that the army should not be involved when non-military materials are procured through government to government arrangements. "Procuring through G2G arrangements is a diplomatic work. The army does not do diplomacy. Why were the finance, health, foreign and home ministries not brought forward for this? Whether the army has the capacity to bring medicines or not was also not considered."
Stating that the current responsibility is outside the army's jurisdiction, he added that this will defame the army. He argued that the government should used the army to construct quarantine/isolation camps at the border instead.
He accused that the government has not even made a plan about what to do if the Nepalis stopped at the border points try to enter forcefully. "We have capacity to build camps. We cannot open fire if the Nepalis stranded at the border try to enter forcefully. We should also have discussed what the army should do in such situation but that has not happened."
He also pointed that the army should be used only through the National Security Council. "There is global crisis now. Nepal is also in a crisis. Decisions should be taken after discussion in the National Security Council in this situation because the army chief can also put his views in the meeting."
Taking a Cabinet decision will not leave room for debate and discussion on that, according to him. "That would mean the army is merely informed."
Claiming that the army has been used to cover up the wrong deeds of the government, he called for the army to forge its stance on the issue. He commented that the government will take credit if the army succeeds in bringing medical supplies and would blame the army if it fails. "The army has been handed over the responsibility with the political leadership's ploy of pointing that the army is also a government organ if the army can bring the materials, and to shirk from the responsibility blaming the army for not carrying out the responsibilities should it fail."
Pointing that the Home Ministry has been mobilized in every disaster, he opined that the ministry should have been given the responsibility even in this. "The Home Ministry is responsible for disaster management. The CIAA can also monitor the works of Home Ministry."
The government on April 1 unilaterally revoked the contract with Omni Group, that had brought the first lot of medical materials from China three days earlier, citing the latter's inability to bring additional materials. Omni Group, with no previous experience in medical supplies, was given the contract without any bidding process in a process that lacked transparency.
It has since decided to hand over the responsibility of bringing the materials to the Nepal Army through government to government arrangements. The decision to ask the army to bring in the medical supplies has been widely criticized.
