KATHMANDU: A fresh round of debate has surfaced within the CPN-UML regarding enforcing a 70-year age limit for office-bearers and restricting them to two terms in executive positions amid rumors that Chairperson KP Sharma Oli is eyeing a third term as the chairperson.
These provisions, according to UML Vice Chairperson Yubaraj Gyawali, have been part of the party statute since the 9th General Convention and are not a new agenda.
In an interview with Himal Press, Gyawali explained that discussions on these limits had begun during the 8th General Convention but were not enforced due to a lack of consensus. The 9th General Convention formally endorsed the rules after extensive deliberations. “The current party statute passed during the 2021 statute convention clearly states that one cannot serve in an executive position for more than two terms or beyond the age of 70,” Gyawali said, citing Article 64 of the UML statute.
He clarified that while the 70-year age cap has not been removed, it was provisionally relaxed using a clause allowing exceptions, to facilitate the potential entry of leaders like Mukunda Neupane and Bamdev Gautam from other parties.
When asked if his advocacy for these provisions would bar him from returning as Vice Chairperson, Gyawali said policies should not be designed around personal gain. “If I have already served two terms, I should not hold that post again. One can remain politically active for life, even without an executive title,” he added.
When asked for his response on Oli’s recent statement that he wants to remain active in the party for the next two decades, Gyawali said he would not comment on what the party chairperson wants to do. “I am simply stating what our statute says. Remaining active and holding an executive post are two different things,” he added.
He added that the two-term limit applies not just to top leaders like the chairperson and general secretary, but to office-bearers at all levels—ward, municipal, district and province. “For instance, Jhal Nath Khanal served only one term as chairperson and did not contest for a second. Oli has completed two terms, so he is also ineligible under this rule,” Gyawali added.
Gyawali added that the implementation of age and term limits was a collective decision. “I was head of the organisational department during the 9th General Convention and presented the revised statute myself. This was not my personal idea; it was the party’s collective resolve,” he maintained.
