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Kathmandu Wednesday December 13, 2000 Mangshir 28, 2057.
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End the NC bickering
The endless bickering going on inside the
ruling Nepali Congress (NC) party is bound to affect governance. This struggle for
leadership within the party comes at a time when the government has been unable to focus
on the core issues confronting the nation.
It began from the time former Prime Minister
Krishna Prasad Bhattarai was forced to give way to the ambition of the present Prime
Minister Girija Prasad Koirala. Younger leaders of the party like former Prime Minister
Sher Bahadur Deuba have sought to take over from PM Koirala. This has led to nowhere but
politicization of all major issues of the country. The failure of the Girija government to
resolve the Maoist insurgency problem has been well exploited by the Deuba camp for
political mileage. Apart from this, there hasn’t been much the Deuba camp has been
able to do. This notwithstanding, there is a point in the NC rival camp’s demand that
Koirala has to relinquish either the post of the party president or prime minister.
Besides this issue being one which Koirala himself had raised some year back, it must also
be borne in mind that concentration of power in a single person will definitely set in an
unhealthy trend. Moreover, a single person will have difficulty managing the affairs of
the country on the one hand and at the same time look after the party leadership.
The NC is the oldest party in the country. It
was no doubt been, at the forefront in the fight against the Rana autocracy. The party has
made important contributions towards the restoration of democracy. But now, these leaders
of the past continue to hold sway over the party and also the government. The younger
generation does have a point in their quest for party leadership. It is unreasonable that
the septuagenarian leaders should continue to decide the fate of the country and keep the
more dynamic young blood waiting in the wings. For this will not allow infusion of
dynamism in the party. Another senior NC leader, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai has also
requested PM Koirala to relinquish the party leadership. It is now up to the PM to decide
whether he wants to continue his dual position or give in to the demand of the day.
The country cannot afford to be held hostage
to the tussle within the ruling party while poverty, mismanagement and corruption are
rampant. The expectations of the people cannot be fulfilled if the government and its
leaders lose their focus on development issues. The rising strength of Maoists is an
indicator that this is a time when the people’s unfulfilled aspirations are being
misled into extremist ideologies and violence. The NC party has to understand this and end
the power struggle within it. Only then can it fulfil its promises to the people. Whether
unity in the NC will be maintained will depend on Koirala’s decision. It is now
entirely up to him whether he sacrifices the greater interest of the country at the altar
of personal ambition.
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