Bhutan King attends opening ceremony of last session of third Parliament

On behalf of the Parliament, National Assembly Speaker Wangchuk Namgyel expressed gratitude to Bhutan King and Queen for the gift of a princess on September 9.

Bhutan King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck attended the opening ceremony of the last session of the third Parliament, The Bhutan Live reported. In a post shared on Instagram, Bhutan King stated, "1 October 2023: His Majesty The King graced the Opening Ceremony of the 10th Session of the Third Parliament this morning. This is the final session of the Third Parliament, following which Bhutan will prepare for the 4th parliamentary elections."

On behalf of the Parliament, National Assembly Speaker Wangchuk Namgyel expressed gratitude to Bhutan King and Queen for the gift of a princess on September 9. Namgyel stated, "We offer our prayers for the long life and well-being of Her Royal Highness the Gyalsem," according to The Bhutan Live report.

In honour of Princess' birth, the Zhung Dratshang on Bhutan King's command, declared the day as Dratshang Yojay Gi Nyim. Yojay is a traditional practice where wealthy people voluntarily offer assets to the Monastic Body, believing that it will help them accumulate merit. Bhutan Parliament Speaker expressed appreciation for Bhutan King and Je Khenpo for the revival of the yojay practice. He said that yojay practice would benefit in understanding and promoting Bhutan's culture and tradition among the youth.

As the practice of yojay was reinstated by the Zhung Dratshang, the Bhutan government made the inaugural yojay offering, The Bhutan Live reported. In July, Bhutan King visited Japan and the United States and met global business and economic leaders in preparation for Bhutan’s forthcoming economic development endeavors. Parliament speaker said, "We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude and reverence to His Majesty The King for this noble endeavour." In addition, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck visited various parts of Bhutan to know about the challenges and difficulties that the people were facing and granted kidu to the people.

He also visited and met with the victims of the Ungar flash flood that occurred on July 20. Wangchuk Namgyel thanked Bhutan's King for His compassion and noble actions. Bhutan Parliament speaker expressed Parliament’s heartfelt gratitude to Khenpo and the Zhung Dratshang for continuously conducting prayers for the world’s well-being, particularly for the country and its people, according to the report.

The Parliament expressed gratitude to Je Khenpo and the Zhung Dratshang for administering the most sacred public empowerment of Buddha Amitabha to commemorate the birth of Bhutan's Princess The Je Khenpo has donated Nu 10 million to support elderly monks in old age care homes, according to The Bhutan Live report. He also assigned the responsibility of the management of the Medicinal and Recreational Park in Sarpang to the Gelephu Thromde. The decision of the Je Khenpo is expected to benefit all people of Bhutan in the future, the report said.

During the 10th session, the Parliament will hold discussions regarding the agreement on the movement of traffic-in-transit between Bhutan and Bangladesh. The lawmakers will also discuss about the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Charter, the Convention on the Right of Persons with Disabilities, the Biological Corridor Nine Bill of Bhutan, motions, and two follow-up implementation reports.

During the Parliament session, the lawmakers will hold discussions regarding the review report of the Anti-Corruption Commission’s Annual Report 2022-2023, the State of the Nation report by the Prime Minister, including legislative and annual plans and priorities of the government and the Public Accounts Committee’s review report on the Performance Audit Reports. (ANI)

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