CPN-UML General Secretary Shankar Pokharel has commented that the ruling coalition's decision to ratify the the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact with interpretative declaration has revealed the government's contradictions.
Speaking with Setopati after the ruling coalition's decision Pokharel pointed that Nepali Congress (NC) and CPN (Maoist Center) had signed the deal and it is incumbent upon them to ratify it as well. "We take this normally. We will not participate in the House proceedings when our demands are not addressed," he stated.
UML has been obstructing the House demanding Speaker Agni Spakota should either implement the party's decision to expel 14 lawmakers of the then Khanal-Nepal faction of the party by publishing a notice to that regard or resign over not implementing that decision.
When asked for his response to the use of UML by ruling NC to threaten Maoist Center and Unified Socialist in the ruling coalition, he commented "We don't have any objection even if they may have done so. Because curtains needed to fall on this charade. It would have been the responsibility of the government to stay together. The government has come together. This brought the government from derailment to a single place. The government should not have been divided. Both the sides could not remain together in the government when there was division. Both the sides have agreed to stay in the government now."
He stressed that this has proved that the comments made by Maoists were unreasonable. "The people have understood who the Maoists are. Cadres will also understand. They have proved with time that the allegations they made against our chairman (KP Sharma Oli) to split the then CPN were all false."
He pointed that interpretative declaration does not have any meaning in treaties and agreements. "What legal standing this interpretative declaration has!" he mocked.
