Dharamsala : The fifth session of the 16th Tibetan Parliament-in-exile, which convened on Sept 18, continued today with bill amendment on electoral legislation as per the first agenda on the day’s list of business.
However, the bill amendment had to be pushed for a different day after it was deemed necessary to present bill amendment on the Charter of Tibetans-in-exile by the Cabinet, pertaining to the electoral rules and regulation, in order to effect the current bill proposed by the same.
Speaker, therefore, directed the Cabinet to present bill amendment on Charter and thereafter, the House to proceed with the second agenda of the day’s business. Subsequently, Kalon Dr. Pema Yangchen, Department of Education, presented the précis 2017-18 report of her department and Parliamentarian Ven. Lopon Thupten Gyaltsen presented the questionas and doubts raised in the reviewed report on the same by the Standing Committee.
Parliamentarian Mr. Lobsang Yeshi tabled the motion for debate on the aforementioned department’s 2017-2018 reports, which was supported by Parliamentarian Mrs. Juchen Kunchok Chodon.
As the motion for debate was unanimously passed in the House, the members of the parliament while raising questions and voicing different opinions and suggestion, congratulated Kalon Dr. Pema Yangchen for assuming the responsibility as Department of Education’s new Kalon for the last 5 months. They also commended the department for their various efforts to provide quality education and opportunities, in particular, the various workshops given to the parents and students, storybooks and animations for children
The session overall saw the House engaged in raising questions, opinions and suggestions over the topics such as better infrastructural facilitations of classes and hostels; smart-class in schools; status of Centre for Teacher Education at Buntar, Himachal Pradesh; ongoing transfer/handing-over of schools under Central Tibetan School Administration; salary and pension of (retired) teachers; various scholarship programs, announcement and awards; secular ethics in school, Tibetan terminology project etc.,
The legislatures, in particular, stressed the importance of equipping the computers at school with Tibetan fonts; incorporating Tibet’s history in the publication of school textbooks; need for conducive and exciting learning atmosphere for the students in school; effects of excessive co-curricular activities in the students’ studies by other organisations in the school etc.,
Former Parliamentarian Mr. Lingtsang Tsering Dorjee, who attended the House as an observer was accorded due honour by the Speaker and members in the House.
Deputy Speaker Ven. Acharya Yeshi Phunstok, who presided over in the last two sittings of the afternoon session, extended the final sitting for an hour from the scheduled 5 pm to 6 pm. He directed the ministers (Kalons) to inculcate the suggestions and opinions voiced during this session in the budget of 2019-20 and in particular, to put into effect those suggestions in the ongoing activities and programs under the respective departments for their furtherance and improvement.
Thereafter, following the list of business, Secretary-General Mr. Tsering Topgyal Lhakhang read the concerned parliamentarians leave of absence and the next week’s tentative list of business.
Twenty-one parliamentarians took part in raising questions and voicing their opinions and suggestions during the agenda of debate and discussion over Department of Education’s 2017-18 report.
The session adjourned at 6:00 pm till 9:30 am of Sept 24, 2018, Monday.