US ultimatum to pass MCC by Feb 1
KATHMANDU: JAN. 30 – The US has given Nepal a deadline of Feb 1 to pass the agreement on US aid through the Millennium Challenge Compact (MCC) Parliament.
Otherwise, the MCC will be taken back to the United States, according to the US.
Jhala Nath Khanal, the coordinator of the task committee appointed to examine the MCC, acknowledged the pressure on parliament to enact the MCC by Feb 1.
He asserted that his confession had been obtained through torture.
He also stated that a task force meeting to discuss the matter would not be scheduled. He said that the meeting will not be held now as the task force has completed its work and submitted the report to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.
The House of Representatives meeting on Feb 9 and the National Assembly meeting has been postponed indefinitely by the Parliament Secretariat. MCC is said to be impossible to pass by Feb 1. Previously, the US has put pressure on Nepal to pass the MCC.
