The Member of Parliament from Bomdeling-Jamkhar constituency under Trashi Yangtse sought clarifications from the Prime Minister regarding the government’s pledge to send elderly citizens aged 65 years and above for pilgrimage. MP Dupthob asked Lyonchhen why the government failed to send them for pilgrimage.
Responding to the MP’s query, Prime Minister Dasho Tshering Tobgay said while the government has not supported sending senior citizens for pilgrimage, his party-the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has supported 290 of them to go for pilgrimage. Lyonchhen said the government should first assess the pros and cons of such an initiative.
“If you think the government is not capable of sending people on pilgrimage, then we are ready to send everyone. But when we do that, don’t complain about the leniency of the government because when we established the central schools, similar incident happened,” Prime Minister explained this in the National Assembly session. “That is why I sent 25 of them last year and hoping to send 25 more this year too.”
Lyonchhen pointed out that the country has over 9000 pilgrim sites which need to be promoted to perk up country’s economy. He added that there are risks involved in sending people in huge group for pilgrimage outside the country.
