KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress President Gagan Kumar Thapa has urged lawmakers to abandon the notion that winning an election gives them the freedom to say or do anything in Parliament.
Speaking at a book launch event organised by the Nand Prasad Januka Foundation in Kathmandu on Thursday, Thapa said decisions taken by the government, Parliament, judiciary and constitutional bodies must not only comply with the law but also be justified and accepted in the eyes of the public.
Thapa said a sense of entitlement had emerged among some lawmakers after entering Parliament through elections.
“Winning an election and entering Parliament does not mean you can say or do whatever you want,” he said, urging lawmakers to abandon such arrogance.
He stressed that even during the one-minute zero hour in Parliament, lawmakers must prepare seriously, remain conscious of their responsibilities and choose their words carefully.
Thapa also urged political parties to learn from history, recalling how the two-thirds majority once held by the Nepali Congress-CPN-UML alliance and the then Nepal Communist Party was eventually lost amid growing public dissatisfaction.
He called on newly emerged political parties to avoid repeating the mistakes of established parties and to correct their own shortcomings.
Thapa said the country could no longer afford another “political adventure” and stressed the need to make the five-year term constructive, organised and responsible.
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