April 13, Kathmandu – A new rule has been established requiring the heads and officers of constitutional bodies, whose appointments are approved through parliamentary hearings, to publicly disclose their quarterly progress reports. The Parliamentary Hearing Committee under the Federal Parliament has formulated a procedural guideline to ensure these officials are bound by this requirement. The guideline was submitted on April 12, 2021 (Baisakh 29, 2078 BS) and includes clear provisions related to performance evaluation and progress reporting. It states, “According to the Constitution of Nepal, individuals appointed following parliamentary hearings must record their performance evaluation progress and publish the quarterly progress reports electronically through their respective agencies. This measure aims to promote performance effectiveness.”
According to Tul Bahadur Kandel, secretary of the Hearing Committee, this is a new arrangement. He said, “The purpose of making the progress public is to enable citizens to know how much of the commitments made by the proposed individuals have been implemented.” When asked why this provision was necessary, Kandel explained, “Since there has been no mechanism for parliamentary oversight following approval of appointments, this provision was incorporated into the procedure at the suggestion of members of parliament to ensure accountability to the public.”
Under Article 292 of the Constitution, appointments of the Chief Justice, Supreme Court justices, members of the Judicial Council, heads or officers of constitutional bodies, and ambassadors require prior parliamentary hearings based on recommendations from the Constitutional Council. As per the new guideline prepared by the Hearing Committee, the Chief Justice and Supreme Court justices will publish their quarterly progress reports on the Supreme Court’s website. Members of the Judicial Council will disclose their progress through the Judicial Council’s website, while heads or officers of constitutional bodies will publish theirs via their respective agencies’ websites. Ambassadors will release progress reports on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ website. Although the guideline does not make this practice strictly mandatory, it aims to encourage these officials to declare their commitments and be accountable to the public.
Officials must commit to publicly releasing quarterly performance evaluation progress reports during parliamentary hearings with the committee. This provision will be implemented by the 15-member Parliamentary Hearing Committee, which includes members from both houses of the Federal Parliament. The guideline’s Article 19 requires that progress reports, which will be publicly posted every quarter, must be presented to the committee during hearings. The guideline states, “The committee must review the candidate’s qualifications, experience, interest, capacity to take responsibility, commitment, and proposed improvements and action plans for the relevant body.” The candidate is required to attend the hearing to present their concept and work plan. The committee may gather additional information if needed. A copy of the presentation must be maintained by the committee as a secure record for at least the duration of the official’s term. Article 26 of the guideline enables the Hearing Committee to coordinate with other parliamentary committees, government agencies, concerned officials, and commissions regarding the work plans presented by candidates.
Madhukumar Chaulagain, a member of the National Independent Party and of the Hearing Committee, said there was an attempt to introduce even stricter provisions. He stated, “We wanted arrangements that would allow us to question officials and hold them accountable through the House of Representatives’ Law, Justice, and Human Rights Committee if they did not perform according to the plan.” However, consensus could not be reached on whether parliament should continuously monitor approved officials. As a result, the provision requiring quarterly disclosure of progress reports was adopted. Chaulagain added, “The new provision will help address shortcomings within the respective bodies. In the past, judges’ performance was formally recorded and evaluated, but when that system was removed, inconsistencies arose. The current arrangement will make judges more accountable.” The committee also believes this new guideline will promote accountability among commissions and ambassadors. He emphasized, “Publishing a report on how much of the stated commitments have been fulfilled compels one to be responsible and will have a positive impact on service delivery.”
