रोशनी तामाङ
Kathmandu. There has been an uproar in the National Bank after the Ministry of Finance prepared a secret draft to amend the National Bank Act 2058. The employees were shocked after the Ministry of Finance itself prepared the draft of the amendment to the act to be made by the National Bank and sent it to the National Bank for its opinion.
The ministry has prepared a draft of the amendment to the act under the leadership of Narayan Prasad Risal, Head of the Financial Sector Management and Institutional Coordination Division. After the draft was prepared, a letter was sent from the ministry to the Legal Department of the National Bank for its opinion and suggestions, and the employees of the National Bank protested.
According to a source in the Ministry of Finance, some legal provisions have been tried to be amended for the appointment of deputy governors in the amendment to the act. Provisions have been made regarding the appointment of Deputy Governor in (16) of the Nepal Rastra Bank Act 2058. Sub-section (1) states that ‘The Government of Nepal, the Council of Ministers shall appoint the Deputy Governor on the recommendation of the Governor.’
Sub-section (2) states that ‘When recommending the post of Governor for appointment pursuant to Sub-section (1), the Governor shall recommend a list of names from among the officers of the special category of the bank in double the number of vacant posts on the basis of efficiency.’ According to which, it is sufficient to be an Executive Director to be the Deputy Governor of the Nepal Rastra Bank. For the appointment of 2 deputy governors, 4 names will have to be recommended.
However, the draft prepared by the Ministry of Finance has made a provision that a person must have completed three years of being an executive director to become a deputy governor. This provision will put a break on the plan for new executive directors to become deputy governors.
Similarly, the draft proposes to add 2 directors to the bank’s board of directors. Currently, there is a provision for 7 board members in the National Bank. There is a provision for the governor, 2 deputy governors, the finance secretary and 3 members from within the National Bank. According to the proposed arrangement, an arrangement has been made to increase the number of members by 2 to 9.
A Rastra Bank employee said, “No unstable laws should be made in Rastra Bank. Earlier, when laws were amended, they would go to the Ministry of Finance only after discussions and debates in Rastra Bank. But here, suggestions have been sought only after the draft has been prepared. This seems to affect the autonomy of Rastra Bank.”
Loud protests by employee trade unions Protest
Bank employee trade unions have strongly protested after the Ministry of Finance sent a letter to the legal department.
The Nepal National Employees’ Organization has written to Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari, urging him to protect the integrity of the central bank. The letter of attention states, “As it is understood that an attempt is being made to amend the Act to allow for subtle interference in the functioning of the Central Bank, we hereby draw your serious attention to the need to reject the draft and proceed with the process of amending the Act only after participatory discussions as per the needs of the Bank.”
Similarly, the Nepal Rastra Bank Employees’ Association has also written a letter to the Governor Adhikari, urging him to stop external interference in the Bank. The association’s letter of attention states, “In this context, the association has drawn serious attention to the issue of the amendment being prepared through the so-called drafting committee without the knowledge of the Minister and Secretary of the Talukdar Ministry to amend the act in violation of the prevailing legal procedure with the aim of attacking the provisions of the Nepal Rastra Bank Act 2058 BS, which institutionalizes the autonomy of the central bank.”
प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्