ATTENTION NOW SHIFTS TO SUNDAY'S ELECTION FOR PM UPDATE

ATTENTION SHIFTS TO SUNDAY’S ELECTION FOR PM; UPDATE ON NEPAL POLITICS
Kathmandu, 26 Aug>; National politics is now centered around Sunday’s election in parliament for a prime minister even as constitution drafting and completion of the peace process have been sidelined.
The two processes won’t be completed by the 31 August deadline; government has already registered a 10th amendment proposal to amend an interim constitution to met the convenience of parties by extending the basic law.
In three years and three months, an interim constitution is being amended for the 10th time disregarding the writing and promulgation of a permanent
Maoists issued a whip Friday afternoon to lawmakers to be present at the legislature 28 for August 28 and cast ballots in prime ministerial elections.
Meanwhile, a NC delegation headed by President Sushil Koirala solicited support Friday for the main opposition candidate from Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal .who is also UML chairman.
A scheduled UML standingcommittee was postponed until Saturday morning.
UML leaders were huddled in talks with leaders of other parties on Sunday’s election, the party said.
A talks team headed of Madhav Kumar Nepal will also get an opportunity to report to standing committee Saturday on talks so far for the election, the party said.
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DIL KUMARI SHRESTHA DEAD
Kathmandu, 26 Aug.: Dil Kumari Shrestha, 99, died Thursday.
The resident of Bhadrapur, Jhapa, was active in politics from 1960 and was popularly known as Mechi Aama.
She died at a medical center in the capital.
She left behind two sons and four daughters.
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NEPAL’S ELECTION COMMISSION AMONGST THE BEST FIVE IN WORLD

Kathmandu, 26 Aug.: The United Nations has highly praised the works carried out by the Election Commission of Nepal and is going to send high-ranking officials to Kathmandu to acquire information to this connection, RSS reports.

Nepal’s Election Commission has been selected among the best five election commissions of the world and a U.N. delegation is arriving Kathmandu for acquiring information about this, said Chief Election Commissioner Nilkantha Upreti at a program here Friday.
“This is a matter of pride for Nepal,” CEC Upreti said. He added that the international community has highly praised the election to the Constituent Assembly held on 10 April 2008.

After the successful conduction of the CA election, the Election Commission has been moving forward programmes like voter education and the voter registration with photos with high priority.

The Chief Election Commissioner said that more than 9.5 million voters have registered their names along with their photographs.

Out of them 52 per cent are women. He said the number of men registering their names might have decreased as many men are abroad on foreign employment.

CEC Upreti also said that of the total voters registered so far, some 157 belong to the third gender.

He also said that the Election Commission has adopted the policy of maintaining gender equality in its works and also stated that the polling centres manned by women in the CA elections were found to be more effective than those managed by men.

The Chief Election Commissioner said the commission has adopted the policy of increasing the participation of women voting centre chiefs in the coming days and making the Election Commission gender-friendly.
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