A LAYMAN’S PERSPECTIVE AND EXPECTATION FROM THE NEPALESE POLITICS
http://www.telegraphnepal.com/news_det.php?news_id=7708
A layman’s perspective and expectation from the Nepalese politics
Dr. Prasanna Ghimire
Currently in China
Nepal has always been a country witnessing the changes within itself in its timeline of existence. Bounded by two evolving super power, Nepal has always been a subject of concern to most foreign countries. This fact has often been taken as an instance to divert we the laymen from the reality of the state by the so called politicians and leaders of our country.
Political turmoil envisioned by the country had not just been the ordeal of the past but rather ordeal for decades to come. A question just lingers in every layman as to whether we were destined or were compelled to bear this way? We, Nepalese nationals have witnessed the various political transition of the country and most of us have been dragged by those events. We were always innocent to be driven by those words of the politicians that we forget their past resolution and we are defying from repeating the same mistake to be buried again.
Democracy as we all know is the rule by the people for the people, but does it make any attribute to our nation? What did we gain in these two decades of democracy besides the cultivation of religious, cultural, social discrimination and unrest? Was it what our long desired democracy offer to us? Almost two-third of the current population was fortunate enough to have witnessed the democratic revolution of 2046, the so called Jana Andolan I. We still can recall how much euphoric all of us were to the democratic transition. We all hoped for a brighter future for the country and to us.
Frequent reshuffle of government was the observance in the time to follow for we the laymen, and we just hoped that new government will be a worthwhile which can live to the expectations of the general mass. Seasons come and seasons change, so had been the political scenario of the country which was so volatile to be. The country had been vaguely crippled by nepotism. Also began the tradition of bandh by various parties and organizations to cripple the nation and to affect the general public making them struggle for daily living. We just hoped that one day a change will come paving a road for the country’s well being but we were just doomed to be right.
This instability in the political process with counter accusation of leaders to each other had already dragged the country to a darker side which was to be further amalgamated by the newly boomed Maoist. The decade long insurgency that followed led the country to another dark era where we now faced the sense of insecurity in our own country. The country faced an almost complete halt in every aspect of development with destruction of the countries’ existing so called infra-structures (not to be mentioned how concrete they were thanks to the politicians) and no any new project underway.
The loss of more than ten thousand brothers and sisters in this decade long war can hardly been forgotten as it is we the laymen who are perished and whose tears filled the eyes and suffering was in the store for the years to come. It is our brothers and sisters be it from the state side or the other who were there enduring the sufferings while leaders remained in safer places of Kathmandu.
Although some consider it as battle against so called aristocratic high class to justify the reason for the insurgency, it definitely acted as dividend of the integrity and harmony of the society with again came as a suffering to the laymen. The so called Jana Andolan II was considered as a major turning point for the country whereby the Maoist came to the main political stream, abolishment of the century long monarchy and establishment of a democratic republic. Much was anticipated from the Maoist by the general public envisaging that a radical change in the country would be made possible. The constitutional assembly election paved the way for the Maoist to perform now as the state authority after they emerged victorious as the lay man entrusted them for a change. As what Lord Acton said “The danger is not that a particular class is unfit to govern: every class is unfit to govern”, the oppositions did not realize what disarray they did all through yesteryears that they now self claimed as the righteous ones to govern even at this losing stage.
With toppling of the Maoist led coalition government following resignation of the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, May 4, 2009, formed a coalition government led by UML under Madhav Kumar Nepal. This government was considered illegitimate since its very inception and the general public had very little confidence that it can bring all the political parties under one roof and attain the task of constitution drafting. Formation of a high level commission among the major parties to sort out the existing differences and promote a logical direction of the political vacuum was disarrayed by the death of Girija Prasad Koirala. The demise of the NC president then resulted in the self proclaimed seniority for the vacant post in the Nepalese Congress. Recently, a wave of protest demanding resignation of the prime minister of the present government was proclaimed as the Jana Andolan III. The atrocities and burden to the country and general public could not be understood by the leaders who were staging the protest as well as those who were driving the nation.
The protesting leaders considered it as a major success but they do not have the legitimate right to consider this unless they view from the general public’s perspective. Be it the foreign intervention (as we have been hearing it since old days to our politics by our dear politicians), or some domestic or internal matters resulted in the discontinuation of the protest is of less concern to the general public (also called MAHAN NEPALI JANTA) who now breathe a brief sigh of relief that they are able to continue their ordinary life till another wave erupts.
2010-05-19 07:16:00
Prasun's Words 