The Himalayan Times
1 September 2023
Periodic election is called one of the basic pillars of democratic governance. Democracy can neither imagined nor materialised in any democratic country without holding periodic elections. It was pleasant to read “Election Commission proposes NOTA, suffrage right for Nepali citizens employed abroad” (THT, 29 August, Page 1) at such a time when the voters were demanding for many years for these clauses to be included in the existing electoral system. The EC has proposed a provision that gives voters a right to reject any candidate and for that, “None of the Above” (NOTA) sign should be included in the ballot paper. Another outstanding concern of the general public was the voting right for the migrant workers living abroad.
As
per the proposed amendment, the Election Commission (EC) has also suggested, among
others, that a person who has already been elected twice through the
proportional representation (PR) system be barred from filing candidacy under
the same electoral category. Likewise, the EC has also proposed a provision
that a candidate who has lost the elections (local, provincial or federal)
shall not be allowed to file their candidacy from another constituency in
either of the elections for five years, except for the by-election of the
respective constituency. Under the 2015 constitution, a mixed electoral system
in which 60%, or 165, representatives are elected under the FPTP system and the
other 40 % or 110 are chosen through the PR system.
Rai Biren Bangdel
Maharjgunj
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