Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Opinion

Krishna Bhandari, Research and Media Center against Corruption (REMAC), Nepal

I basically come from Arjun Dhara VDC in the Jhapa district in the eastern border of the country.

I obtained the diploma course in the Humanities right from the Jhapa Campus. Later, I completed the Masters degree in Public Administration discipline from the MPA campus in Kathmandu in the year 1997.

Before I dwell at length let me make it clear that I came to Kathmandu to further my studies from Jhapa in the year 1994.

Well, upon the successful completion of the MPA degree, I had a fast life here in Kathmandu in the sense that the upcoming years were challenging ones for me which continues yet.

I began with the job at the Public Service Commission which brought me to the Ministry of Information and Communication wherein I was provided a responsibility that was very much associated with the monitoring and developing a sort of concept for the institutionalization of the FM Radio Stations in the country. I worked there as a coordinator and as the luck would have it; I then switched on to the Board of the Films. It was here that I stayed for well over two years.

At this place, I was entrusted with the job of monitoring the development Taxation wherein I had a terrible and appalling experience. I could see that the Cinema Hall owners even daringly tried to corrupt me. Various sorts of high-powered influences came in the way but I remained undeterred. Thanks that Yadav Kharel, a celebrated figure in the domain of the Nepali Cinema industry who ever encouraged me to go my charted and determined way come what may.

Appalled by the manner the Film board functioned and the subtle mechanisms that tried to corrupt me, I had to switch to yet another workplace. This time I preferred to be associated with the CIAA-Corruption Investigation and Abuse of Authority, and at this institution I stayed for one and a half year.

My stint there remained for me, honestly speaking, as a thrilling and hair-raising experience. I was very much a part of the courageous team that raided the houses of some twenty-two corrupt government officials and brought them to the book. The raid were conducted at an unearthly hours.

However, here too I could conclude that though the laws to penalize the corrupt were strong enough, nevertheless, the procedures that were to be followed were too weak one. IN effect, when it came to the court for initiating due punitive actions against corrupts, the internal procedural hurdles were gigantic and hence the matter used to get aborted in most of the cases.

My contention had been that the CIAA must be equipped with a sort of Tribunal which could finalize the cases of corruption on its own. However, this was not forthcoming for a variety of political reasons.

It was at the CIAA, I had yet another threat-loaded but yet pleasing experience.

In the mean time I joined the Nepal Press Institute and as an intern for my thesis, I made a story on “Corruption in the Courts” which created havoc in the country and jolted the entire judicial system. This article got later printed in various national level weeklies and broadsheet dailies which were sufficient enough to draw the attention of the courts in the country. The one which came into immediate action was the Kathmandu district court which later informally summoned me to prove my findings contained in the said article.

Thanks that the Court did not take any penal actions against me. Instead, listening to my scientific investigation, the court, to my utter surprise, transferred some 35 department-clerks to other courts. Perhaps this would have been the first ever case in the country wherein Nepali courts came into fast actions.

As a student of media, this was one event that encouraged me beyond any explanation.

I am sorry! I have some thing more to add to my job experience.

After some time, I got a penchant for sharpening my skill in the sector of governance and thus I joined the Pro-Public forum and worked there fort some time until I came across with some problems in the said institution.

This hitch at the Pro-Public was sufficient for me to switch over to yet another forum called the REMAC which is the abbreviation of “Research and Media Center Against Corruption”. It took four full days to abbreviate this forum.

REMAC was founded in the year 2003 and I worked there as the Executive Founder General Secretary.

The objectives of the REMAC are, among others, to conduct research surveys as regards corruption and to disseminate the findings through the effective use of the media both electronic and print. I have had one added advantage in disseminating the gist of our investigations as the REMAC itself currently houses more than 45 plus journalists engaged in different media organisations.

Currently I am the Executive Director of the REMAC.

In addition to that, I am also concurrently the Program Director of the SCAM-Strengthening Anti-corruption Movement through Research Media Mobilization. This project has been supported by the USAID and the project itself is almost at its completion stage. Under this project, we at the SCAM ran a weekly program in Radio Sagar Matha FM on Good Governance which was relayed by some 14 similar Radio Stations located in different parts of the country. This program mainly deals with anti-corruption measures that need to be adopted by the State in order to control, manage and reduce corruption that is so rampant and all-pervaisve in this country.

At the REMAC, we have managed effectively to conduct a fortnightly discussion program on anti-corruption since long and the program has been a resounding success to say the least. My colleagues at the REMAC have been of tremendous support to me and we through our collective efforts have made the program a resounding success.

Have the corrupt practices come down?

Oh! Jesus Christ! NO. It has not. Let me admit honestly that corruption level has not come down in the country as it should have as a matter of fact. What I feel is that creating awareness among the masses does not guarantee the reduction in corrupt practices. Nevertheless, this is just a part of the whole process.

My conclusion has been that apart from what we at the REMAC have been doing in order to create awareness against corruption and corrupt practices what needs more to be done in this regard is to build a sort of what I prefer to call a “National Integrity System-NIS- which theoretically, at least in my view, goads a human being towards practicing self-control, self-governed and self-cultured. It is this theory, which is certainly a hard undertaking to observe in real practice, which if adopted could well reduce the level of corruption what is all-pervasive in this country.

I have theoretically envisioned that the NIS should be based on certain pillars, for example, the media, the civil society and the likes which should effectively monitor the performances of the National Integrity System.

Nevertheless, at the end, let me tell you frankly that the advent of what we call the Loktantra has coincided with the clean chit being provided in series to number one declared corrupts of the country by the concerned courts of the country and the mysterious killings in the recent weeks of the precious Rhinos.

It is time that we investigate the linkages, if any, in between the sad events that have of late been taking place in the country.

That’s all.

[Based on a tête-à-tête with Mr. Bhandari last weekend-ed.]