Gautam said so at the Public Accounts Committee of parliament on Thursday responding to lawmakers' queries regarding distribution of sub-standard food by WFP and a senior UN official's threat to pull out its support from Nepal.Lawmakers at the meeting criticized the government for not taking any action though distribution of substandard food by WFP and the UN official's remark has been criticized widely.
"The government will talk to responsible authorities regarding the issue. We know where to talk and what to say," Gautam told lawmakers at the meeting.
Bharat Saud, a lawmaker, said the WFP insulted Nepali people first by distributing sub-standard food and then a senior UN official warned of withdrawing WFP assistance from Nepal.
Director of Coordination and Response Division of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) John Ging on July 2 had slammed the Nepali media for its reporting on sub-standard food provided by the World Food Program (WFP) to the earthquake victims. Likewise, he even warned that WFP may pull out its assistance if such criticisms against WFP continued.
"Should not the government take immediate action on such a sensitive issue?" asked Saud.
Also, several other lawmakers, including Ram Hari Khatiwada expressed their dissatisfaction over government inaction. Khatiwada accused the government of not taking action against WFP as some ministers in the government have personal connections with WFP-Nepal office.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister's Press Advisor Prateek Pradhan said Prime Minister's Office has put forth the issue to the concerned WFP officials. "WFP has communicated to the government that it would investigate the matter and submit a report to the government," said Pradhan.
According to Pradhan, the WFP has so far been claiming that the food it distributed to earthquake victims was not of substandard quality and the found substandard was in fact collected to return to the concerned suppliers.
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