Priorities
In
Conflict
After reaching agreement on peaceful political solution of twelve-years-long bloody conflict, the priority of common people and political leaders is, itself, in conflict now. Following the political change, people’s priorities are: restoration of peace, rehabilitation of displaced population, quality of education, health, employment opportunities and economic progress. However, the priority of political leaders- who have been projecting a dream of New Nepal - is to stay in power at any cost. From closure of industry to disruption of trade, business, transport and communication network and scarcity of petroleum products, country’s overall situation is no different than a war-torn country. However, supreme leader of eight parties and prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala has declared that his priority is to hold the “abnormal elections” in “abnormal time.” As the priorities of common people and leaders of political parties clash, the future of New Nepal seems to be gloomy
By KESHAB POUDEL
Nepal’s current situation corresponds with what Will Durant has said in The Story of Philosophy, “If the government itself is a chaos and an absurdity, if it rules without helping, and commands without leading – how can we persuade the individual, in such a state, to obey the laws and confine his self-seeking within the circle of the total good. …… No wonder there is chaos where there is no thought, and the crowed decides in haste and ignorance, to repent at leisure and in desolation.”
For the past few months, almost all petrol pumps are overcrowded with a long queue of motorbikes and vehicles indicating the abnormal situation of the country. The two week long blockade called by Madhesi Janadhikar Forum has completely paralyzed the economic activities in Nepal .
Thanks to the disruption of export import activities, many industries were shut down and a large number of workers laid off. Education institutions are without leaders and frequent general strike called by various groups and political parties has completely ruined the quality of education.
However, from octogenarian prime minister Koirala to political leaders of so called revolutionaries and regressive forces, all have been chanting the slogans of New Nepal and their priorities are to remain in power while priorities of common people and difficulties faced by them have become nobody’s agenda.
New Nepal
None of political leaders has announced clearly what new Nepal looks like and how will they address people’s priority. They don’t know whether it will be an anarchical state with lawlessness and a large breed of unemployed people or is it going to be a country with political stability and high economic growth?
As leaders of eight political parties could not agree on the persons to be appointed as vice vice-chancellors in country’s four main universities, the latter are running in ad hoc manner. It displays their utter negligence towards the priority of people.
When political leaders spend almost all their time in the agenda of power sharing, interim government and interim arrangements, the priorities of common people have been pushed to back bench.
“Our priority now is how to hold the elections for Constituent Assembly in June. People have to sacrifice certain things for the betterment of country,” said Nepali Congress leader Ram Chandra Poudel. “After the elections for CA, all the issues will be settled.”
For the common people of Nepal , the life has become more difficult. The disruption in transport networks has completely halted their mobility and the mob is dictating terms.
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“After six decades of political developments in Nepal , the same political parties, same class of political leaders and almost same persons have issued a new call for a New Nepal disowning all their past involvement in the political process. But none of these political parties have categorically defined how and in what sense a new Nepal have been dreamt by them,” said the political analyst.
Nobody knows what will be economic policy. Whether it will be completely privatized, liberal economy or there will be state control? What would be the policy regarding land reform and the way of farming - whether that will be production oriented or employment oriented? How will they upgrade the quality of higher education?
“We will make a New Nepal after the elections for Constituent Assembly where all people will have equal share,” said CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal .
No Agenda for Consensus
As there is no point of agreement on many issues, the priorities of common people are yet to be taken up even in a group discussion,. Since last year’s uprising, the political parties had a point of agreement only on the issue of monarchy - that will decided by the first meeting of the Constituent Assembly.
“Maintaining silence over the issue, prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala has also followed the major trend led by republicans of all the political parties lately. But, even on the question of removal of monarchy they are divided into two major factions one which wants to declare the abolition of monarchy by this interim parliament itself. There is another group of persons within the Nepali Congress rank and some professionals, too, who believe that only the Constituent assembly could decide on such crucial issue, which are made mandatory under the interim constitution also,” said the analyst.
After a sudden change in the outlook of prime minister Koirala, the balance has been disturbed. Ultimately, what prime minister is going to do is not very clear. But one of his latest statements was very disturbing when he said that the country is in the “abnormal situation so there will be abnormal elections for Constituent Assembly.”
“Developing countries have very dangerous precedents in the past of facial elections. Some countries like Sikkim and Kashmir have lost their identity by such abnormal elections,” said the analyst.
According to the analyst, as the situation of the country is really in a critical state the abnormal remedy provided by its all powerful executive head is alarming. In the context of such situation in the country, people need to be assured of the agenda and priorities of issues related to their economic well bring, security, health, education and stability in the political order.
Political parties who are in power have been found always holding summit meeting over their own agenda. In some of the summit meeting held by these ruling parties, no other issues of common people have been taken up except of sharing the power and distributing key portfolios to maintain effective hold on power.
“This is interim period and the government formed for interim period cannot take major decisions with far reaching consequences. The government formed after the elections will decide agenda of broader economic interest, land reform, education policy and others,” said Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat to Sagarmatha Radio.” People need to show patience.”
“Nobody is concerned about the priorities and preference of people and country. Every political party has their own agenda and priorities to appoint their own yes men,” said professor Dhruba Kumar with the Center for Nepal and Asian Studies Tribhuwan University .
Pathetic Situation in University
The pathetic situation of country’s four government universities - which are running in ad-hoc basis without vice chancellors - is an example how they fail to develop minimum understanding on important concerns of common people.
“When policy makers, politicians and members of parliament send their children abroad, nobody is concerned about the quality of education in the college of government universities like Tribhuwan University,” said Uddhav Pyakurel, a teacher at Tribhuwan University who is currently doing Ph.D. “The role of students of higher education is to hold the banner of political parties and stage agitation in favor of particular political parties whenever they require. Nobody has time to think about the institution of higher education.”
With the enrolment of about 500,000, Nepal ’s higher education system is in trouble. According to the Economic Survey 2006, there were 203,000 students enrolled in Tribhuwan University , 2958 in Mahendra Sanskrit University , 2476 in Kahmandu University , 5984 in Purwanchal University and 4614 in Pokhara University and rest of students are in other higher secondary schools.
“If the country’s political leadership is visionless, like all other sectors, university also will have to suffer,’ said Dhruba Kumar. “Of course, quality of education makes a lot of differences in overall economic progress in the country but education is a least priority for them.”
A globally renowned economist Galbraith said in his last book Nature of Poverty that where there is no literacy, there is poverty and where there is literacy there is no poverty. He argues that the country is poor because it lacks trained, educated and experienced technical and administrative talents.
But, that comes nowhere in the priorities in the political intermediaries in Nepal at present. “Number one priorities of Asian Tigers are education. The US still maintain education as a number one priority. The success of China ’s economic boom is result of top priority given to the education. Education is top priority in all the members of Asian counties or Asian Tigers like Thailand , Singapore and Malaysia . Though India lags behind, its recognition in the same standard is because some of its universities and academic institutions are held in highest estimation anywhere,” said the analyst.
Being a poorest of the poor countries, the so called leaders of New Nepal have been so negligent about the education system that education minister Dr. Mangal Siddhi Manandhar, who himself has an impressive academic background, regrets about the pitiable condition about the universities. “I recommended the named for the vice chancellors but prime minister has not accepted it. As a minister of education, I regret it,” said Dr. Manandhar.
Expressing his resentments that the prime minister does not seriously consider his recommendation for the appointment of vice chancellor in various universities, Dr. Manandhar has revealed publicly about politicization of higher education. Despite that he is no different than other intermediaries in clinging to the power as long as he is not kicked out unceremoniously.
Private Sector In Education and Employment
At a time when donor’s support in higher education is virtually non existent, Nepal ’s private sector entrepreneurs in the education have done marvelous job by imparting quality education.
“Despite lawlessness and insecurity spread by the Maoist insurgency, the net result of the private entrepreneurship in the education has been in the top of the record. Through Nepalese expertise and investment, tremendous development has taken place in the education sector which surpasses the contribution made by the governmental sector along with the world agencies and several donor countries,” said the analyst.
To increase the number of education quantitatively, the government sector has played a major role. So far quality is concerned, private sector has superseded it. In the fields of education, it is not only quantity but quality that counts much.
A huge army of unemployed persons inside the country and outside may have much contribution by the lesser quality of education and training. Whoever has better education and training has a better chance in the competitive world market. Education of any grade or quantity is important but economically what is most important and viable is the quality education.
In the Name of the People
Everything is done for the people and by the people but there are other classes which have emerged as new aristocrats who have acquired enough resources and manpower to tell the people what the people need and, therefore, how they should feel.
Theoretically, they don’t deprive the people from a prestige of a sovereign but they nowhere allow the people to get rid of their poverty.
“If people are really accepted as real decision makers, as sovereign, the government has to look after the priorities of common people. Instead of that, if the intermediaries in power in various political capacities suspend the operation of sovereign power of the people and declare their own principles as the priorities of people as well as nation, what would be their priorities? The people need guarantee of their right agenda for development in trade, commerce, economy, health and education with an institutional guarantee for implementation,” said the analyst.
“B.P. Koirala had diagnosed this force as offshoot (Bhui Futta) as a class in itself. After putting the monarchy in suspension, this class of political intermediary has assumed all the power of traditional monarchy and aristocracy around it. Besides that, this force has an additional strength of a popular posture also.”
As the rights to take decision through periodical elections are suspended for indefinite period, people have no chances to challenge their priorities. The priority decided by intermediaries in power would be the guarantee for politician to be in power.
Nepal ’s Conflict
Nepal is universally known as a country in serious conflict. Conflict experts from all over the world are aware about Nepal ’s critical situation somehow or other. A lot of seminars and symposiums are held every month inside or outside Nepal related with the problems of conflict but no one has made efforts to analyze why the priorities of people and government are in conflict.
“Opinions are being rendered through various channels about the resolution of the conflict in this country. But very little information comes out to the public about the root cause of this conflict. All players of conflict are not visible to be detected. So far as the visible forces are concerned, there is a class of people in general in the politics as a base,” said the analysis.
The UN and its several branches are involved in the study of effects of conflict and post conflict management in Nepal . UN conflict experts are regularly visiting Nepal . Just a few months ago, senior UN rights official Louis Arbour visited Nepal .
In the same sequences, the World Bank has also been seriously supporting Nepal to deal with the problems of conflict management. In a series of its efforts, the World Bank has invited Prof. Ashraf Ghani, former finance minister of Afghanistan (between 2002-2004) in Nepal . Prof. Ghani discussed the issue with various persons of different disciplines.
According to the World Bank, Ghani also visited Nepal in May 2006 in the aftermath of the political transition when he undertook a rapid assessment of the situation and offered advice to the Nepal government and Nepal ’s development partners.
“The World Bank has been much generous to Nepal after the debacle of Arun III power project. Some ulterior interest played a negative role against Nepal on the Arun III power project. Due to which Nepal has a severe shortage of electricity generation though that is not only the reason for the present load shedding,” said the analyst. “There is a misunderstanding among some Nepali intellectuals about the lavish contribution made by the World Bank in various sectors of Nepal ’s overall development. Maintaining a diplomatic decency, their officers cannot explain, the reasons for disuse but it is mainly due to the unstable political situation and lack of visions and commitments of politicians in power that the offers extended by the WB have been made futile.”
Along with the UN, the World Bank and other international agencies, conflict in Nepal is the top priority of the foreign departments of all the developed countries of west including Japan .
USA has its own capability of policing power which European countries particularly liberal Scandinavian countries do not have. These western European countries have been making more generous contribution in the field of grass root development in Nepal in reconstruction and rehabilitation.
All kinds of fanatical slogans are being popularized in the street which has a divisive tendency leading to tribal fragmentation of society and state. It is in this context people in general inside Nepal and friends of Nepal abroad intensely feel the lack of leadership with vision, integrity and courage.
The time is running out for the present leadership in the country to establish their work by taking care of vital issues of interest to the people.
