The Parliament of Bhutan is looking at establishing an office in every district for the parliamentarians. Currently, district administrations are being consulted for such a space. The Speaker of the National Assembly shared this during a meeting in Trongsa yesterday.
Speaker Wangchuk Namgyel said, without a proper office in the districts, Members of Parliament (MP) face inconveniences during their constituency visits. It hampers efficient public service delivery.
“The MPs have the oversight functions; they have the monitoring functions and other important functions to be carried out. So when they visit Dzongkhags and gewogs, they need to carry out lots of discussions. And for parliamentarians visiting office to office can have a reversal impact on the quality of discussion. Hence it will be better if the office could be set up immediately,” the Speaker said.
He added, although it would be ideal to have a parliament office in every district, its establishment will depend on the availability of space:
“In some dzongkhags, it is available while in many, they have some space constraint. If space is made available, it would be very good.”
So far, of the nine districts the Speaker visited, most welcomed the idea.
“I thought it is much appropriate and very relevant if they could set up an office in the Dzongkhag but not in the gewogs. And in case of Trongsa district, we are ready to spare any space that is required for establishing the office for them,” said Karma Dhendup, the Trongsa Dzongrab.
Speaker Wangchuk Namgyel is visiting the districts and meeting its officials and various representatives to create awareness on Bhutan’s Parliament system while discussing the proposal as well.
Passang
