The residential meeting of the CPN-UML’s election review and party reorganization task force, held from Saturday to Monday, failed to reach any conclusion.
Instead, the task force formed another smaller task force.
The three-member task force comprises party Vice-chairman Ram Bahadur Thapa, who is also coordinator of the main task force, another Vice-chairman Bishnu Paudel, and General Secretary Shankar Pokharel.
Throughout the meeting, Thapa repeatedly questioned the very rationale of the task force. As a result, the three-day meeting failed to reach a conclusion.
“The coordinator kept speaking in a way that suggested the task force itself was not appropriate. We have presented our views. Now the task force will hold discussions and present a proposal at the meeting on September 17,” a task force member told Setopati. “The meeting on September 17 must settle the matter. We cannot keep dragging this out indefinitely.”
The three-day meeting, held at Balthali Resort in Panauti, Kavre, discussed a report prepared by General Secretary Pokharel and a counter-report written by Vice-chairman Thapa.
Only Thapa and task force member Mahesh Basnet, who is also a party secretary, fully defended Thapa’s report.
“Badalji [Thapa] presented the issue as though attempts were were being made to remove the chairman. The party chairman was also repeatedly calling him and putting pressure on him,” the member said. “An attempt is being made to portray the report prepared by the task force under Badalji’s leadership as merely the general secretary’s report. He forgot that the report was prepared on the basis of suggestions received from lower-level party committees.”
Another task force member said that after Thapa refused to prepare the report, three members were assigned responsibility for drafting the final proposal.
Party leaders say Thapa is in favor of scrapping the task force altogether. The member claimed that the report prepared by General Secretary Pokharel would now likely be adopted.
He said that they would not be able to strengthen the party unless it moved forward on the basis of the report prepared by the task force.
“We are trying to strengthen the party, but the coordinator has tried to interpret everything as an attempt to remove the chairman. We believe a graceful exit is necessary for him. How that is implemented should be discussed within the party,” the task force member said.
According to sources, party Chairman KP Sharma Oli wants the report prepared by General Secretary Pokharel to be rewritten.
Thapa is maintaining his position in line with Oli’s wishes, according to the sources.
“Even if Badal wants to, the task force’s work cannot be stopped now. A report will be prepared on the basis of a majority-minority decision if necessary. The party chairman is trying to bypass other meetings and directly hold a central committee meeting,” the task force member said. “Perhaps he expects to see more members supporting his side at the central committee meeting scheduled for September 21 to 23. But I believe he will understand what the cadres right from the grassroots actually want.”
