BEIJING: The top legislature is expected to decide on Wednesday on the exact timing of this year’s plenary session of the National People’s Congress, after the nation’s most important annual political event was postponed due to the novel coronavirus epidemic.
A draft decision on the opening date of this year’s full session of the NPC was submitted for review on Sunday to the bimonthly meeting of the NPC Standing Committee, according to an official release. The meeting is scheduled to end on Wednesday. No details were disclosed.
The annual plenary session of the NPC normally opens in early March. About 3,000 national legislators from across the country gather in Beijing to review work reports from the central government, as well as the nation’s highest court and procuratorate, the budget and the national economic and social development plan. In some years, they also deliberate on key bills or elect State leaders.
However, the NPC Standing Committee decided in February to postpone the third plenary session of the 13th NPC, as the nation was focusing on fighting the COVID-19 outbreak at the time and many national legislators were working on the front line of the battle.
– The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item
