KATHMANDU: The lawmakers in the National Assembly, the upper house of the Federal Parliament, have urged the top leaders of political parties to think about the nation rather than engage in trading accusations between the ruling and the opposition sides.

They also suggested to the government that the budget for the next fiscal year should be focused on building a self-reliant economy. They said investment should be increased in agriculture and tourism, among other sectors, for this.

Taking part in the deliberations on the principles and priorities of the Appropriation Bill for the Fiscal Year 2022/23 in the Upper House Thursday, they called on the party leadership to focus on the overall development of the country, including its economic advancement.

Taking time from the Speaker in the third session of the House today, Jitendra Narayan Dev of the Nepali Congress (NC) urged the leaders of the political parties to keep the nation first and prioritize the economy instead of in exchange of accusations and counter-accusations. He called on the opposition party to give constructive suggestions in this regard and said national consensus is necessary for national development and to build a robust national economy.

Narayan Kaji Shrestha of the CPN (Maoist Center) called on the political parties to introspect and move ahead together for the economic development of the country by correcting any shortcomings. He stressed on the implementation of the Constitution in a new way.

Shrestha said that the local units should take forward the development model by linking development with production and employment creation. The former Foreign Affairs Minister cautioned against making the national policy, diplomacy and nationality as the means of fulfilling the political interest of a particular party. He also stressed that the budget for the next fiscal year should prioritize effective corruption control measures.

CPN (UML) lawmaker Khimlal Bhattarai said that the opposition party would be ready for collaboration only if the government has the right plan. He underscored the need of changing the present political narrative towards development and prosperity rather than only on politicking.