By TON Nepal

As the federal government of Nepal is ending in four months with the elections declared for November 20. Seven years since constitution declaration local governments await federal education Act. The constitution permits local governments to make laws, but the statute also speaks such laws will be void if they deny the federal law. The authority over school education has been the most discussed subject between the federal and local governments.

While the local governments have been saying they have constitutional authority to manage education up to grade 12. However, the federal government is hesitant to give the authority. Schedule 8 of the constitution gives local governments the clear authority of basic and secondary education while schedule 9 puts education under the simultaneous right of the federal, provincial and local governments.

The constitution lists out the authorities in broad terms which are described openly by the Acts and rules. They are also the precondition for the application of the constitution. However, around seven years since the promulgation of the constitution and five years since last parliamentary elections, the government is yet to permit a bill to enforce a federal education act.

However, over a year since the federal minister of education took charge, the education ministry is yet to finalize the bill. As the current education minster is the fifth education minister since the enforcement of the Constitution of Nepal and third since the last general elections.

Although every minister in the past has made similar claims. No minister, however, has fulfilled their claim to have the Act in place. The officials at the Education Ministry say they have already prepared a draft of the federal education bill is stuck at the Finance Ministry and urged the Finance Ministry to give the clear the bills.

The local representatives say they have completed their term without getting to exercise their constitutional authority in lack of the law. Even though the first term of local governments since the enforcement of the constitution is already finish. There is no certainty on when the Act would be framed. The recent local level elections were held on May 13. Allowing the local governments to oversee the school education was one of the most important aspects of federalism. However, it doesn’t seem like the Act will be promulgated anytime soon.

Local government representatives say with the federal and provincial assembly elections set to be held later this year, they are not hopeful that the present House will pass the law on November 20. In this scenario, it will not be possible to promulgate the Act from the ongoing parliamentary session if the bill is not passed soon.

The constitution permits local governments to make laws. However, the constitution also says such laws will be void to the extent they contradict the federal law. On many occasions in the past, the federal government has issued circulars to local governments ordering them not to make laws until the associated federal Acts are formulated. A writ petition challenging the circular at the Supreme Court in this respect. The court has not scheduled the final hearing for this petition.

Lack of lawful clearness has left the entire education sector in messes. The Act is a must to bring school education on pathway. Absence of a constitutional time limit for promulgation of laws like the one related to the fundamental rights is also reason for the delay.

The constitution made it compulsory to have laws linked to fundamental rights in place within three years since its enforcement. It also said the current Acts that deny the constitution must be reviewed within a year since the first meeting of the federal parliament.

The government prepared the laws within the constitutional deadline. However, there is no such constitutional deadline for the enforcement of federal laws, following governments have become careless in discharging their duties. The hesitancy in enforcing laws like the Federal Education Act is one of the reasons why the federalism hasn’t been fully implemented yet in Nepal.