KATHMANDU: Members of the Finance Committee under the House of Representatives have urged the government to make public the expenditures under USAID programs in Nepal.
At today’s Committee meeting, lawmaker Ganga Karki emphasized the need for transparency, particularly after US President Donald Trump accused the aid implementation of “fraud.”
According to unofficial sources, it is believed that the funds were allocated through the Natural Resources and Finance Commission, and Karki suggested that the Commission should address these concerns.
Lawmaker Gyanendra Bahadur Karki also questioned the context in which the US President referenced the “fraud.”
He highlighted that the US-funded Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact, which was signed during his tenure as Finance Minister, had been endorsed by the Parliament.
Karki further stressed the importance of concluding the bills currently under discussion in the Finance Committee.
Meanwhile, Surya Bahadur Thapa Chhetri argued that the matter raised by the US President should be debated in the House of Representatives, not within the Committee, as it pertains to a broader parliamentary issue.
He proposed that the Ministry of Finance could provide the requested details of USAID expenditures.
Thapa Chhetri also pointed out that the Committee meetings often extend beyond their scheduled time and tend to focus on discussions outside the agenda, reducing their overall effectiveness.
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