Prime Minister (PM) and CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli and CPN (Maoist Center) counterpart Pushpa Kamal Dahal have had a three-hour one-on-one meeting on Thursday.
Dahal had reached the PM's official residence in Baluwatar at 9:30 in the morning and talked for three hours about unification. What the two leaders exactly talked about has not been revealed.
The parties have already postponed the unification scheduled for April 22 citing lack of adequate homework. The meeting of coordination committee for unification on Tuesday had sent the report prepared by the two task forces formed to expedite unification to the two chairmen for finalization.
The parties have yet to agree on some issues including representation at the top level of the unified party. The major difference between the two parties currently is on the issue of representation at the top level. Maoist Center says there should be equal representation in the standing, politburo and central committees but UML disagrees.
The task force including leaders from both the parties has almost agreed on a 300-strong central committee. UML central committee currently has 209 members, and UML leaders have proposed to add Maoist leaders to take the number to 300.
UML argues there cannot be equal sharing in the central committee after the two parties shared tickets in 60:40 proportion in the recent federal and provincial elections, and candidacy for the National Assembly election in 70:30 proportion.
Maoist Center disagrees and argues that doing so would seem like a takeover of Maoist Center by UML instead of unification, and proposes that unification should be done in a manner that self-respect of both the parties is honored to make the unified party strong even in the future.
But the most important issues reportedly is Dahal seeking guarantee that he would be met the consensus chairman of the unified party after the next general convention.
