Local Governments
Partisan Or Non-Partisan?

Mukti Rijal

WHETHER local bodies should be partisan or freed from the yoke of party politics is being discussed often despite the fact that the Local Self Governance Act provides for party based electoral process at the local level. It puts at rest the debate for the time being. But in a democracy, pluses and minuses of each and every proposition or provision should come in for sharper scrutiny. Moreover, experiences acquired or lesson learnt from practice, provide inputs for deliberation to arrive at more appropriate conclusions. The subject of partisan oriented or non-partisan local governments calls for discussions time and again.

Unimaginable

When this writer raises, the issue with elected officials at the local level-VDCs and DDCs, the views held is not unanimous. They are divided. there is also subdued fear to speak for non-partisan local governments least one could be accused of being supportive of the partyless ideas. In practical terms, partyless local governments are almost unimaginable or inconceivable.

Even during the partyless Panchayat era the banned political parties - the Nepali Congress and leftists - fielded their candidates without expressly naming them or extended clandestine and informal support to the candidates of their preference in the elections. In a society that is infested with political polarisation, politics can not be detached or separeted from the elections at the local level. There is the similar experience from the state of Karnataka of India. The state of Karnataka has non-partisan Gram Panchayats in formal terms. However, party politics is almost the decisive element in the local units.

There are several benefits associated with multiparty-based local elections. The political parties contest election on programmes and issues. Performance and delivery may hold the key. Voters have programmatic choices; not the election based on the influence of personalities. Parties are generally expected to nominate candidates competent enough to deliver and perform well. The opposition at the local government units will keep alert to expose the ruling party while party in power will strive to outsmart the opposition.

Multiparty competitive election is generally expected to enhance political acculturation at the local level. People are educated politically and also offered opportunities to compare, discriminate right and wrong. Parties compete to convince people and establish the merit of their manifest ideas. Moreover, political parties sustain on inner party discipline and those breaching it are subject to action.

It is believed that political parties keep their people elected to local governments within the boundary of discipline. And those people bent on misusing resources and tarnishing the image of the party are liable to face action or being disowned by the party.

Local bodies are said to be nurseries of the political leaders. The leadership can grow and gain maturity to take up challenges of national level if they are trained well at the local level.

This can only be ensured if multiparty competition is fostered at the local level. The positive aspects of the partisan oriented local bodies are numerous and thus politically relevant in multiparty democracy. However, some positive aspects seem more theoretical and it is difficult to translate them into practical plane. Experiences gathered over the past few years in Nepal indicate that partisan oriented local bodies are not free from defects as well. Local issues are overly politicised and community is split along the partisan interest.

Development activities are thus forged as to suit to the party interests. Elected officials work more as party functionaries, not as independent elected representatives of the people. In some cases, local bodies are reduced to forum for serving party interests and propagating partisan views. Development projects in some cases are allegedy selected to benefit the constituents of political parties.

In others, political deadlock has hampered the execution of development activities. Local bodies are in the state of impasse. Local cooperation activities. Local cooperation and support in some cases have become difficult to mobilise as politically motivatad conflicts have filtered down to the communities.

Far Discussion

The negative fallouts cannot be advanced as the sole reasons to reverse the process and convert the local bodies forum non-partisan. But there should be open and fair discussion on the issue to create room for correction and reform. Democracy allows for non partisan local governments as well. Even in the United States of America, local governments are non partisan in some states. Democracy allows free and free debate for which we should not backtrack.

Development Of Decentralisation

By Dipesh Thapa

ON the outset of twenty-first century when the world economy is fast moving towards globalisation Nepalese economy is still struggling with almost traditional socio-economic structure. Nepal has lagged far behind the countries that started planned development with it. Even in South Asia, looked upon as the poorest countries in the world, Nepal is only ahead of Bhutan in terms of per capita income.

After a half century-long development exercise, agriculture is still remaining as a source of subsistence for more than 80 per cent people. The industrial sector, which is supposed to play a leading role in transforming subsistence agrarian regime and reducing widespread poverty in the country is still at primary stage. The manufacturing idnustries employ only around 2 per cent of total population and contribute in the range of 10 per cent to the GDP. Unemployment, which is directly linked to poverty, is around 4.9 per cent and about 47 per cent people are underemployed in the country. In addition, low labour productivity has aggravated the causes of poverty. Besides, there are so many other socio-economic factors responsible in improving poverty in the country.

Even official estimates reveal that 49 per cent of total population of the country is living under absolute poverty line. This means almost half the population of the country do not have access to the basic human needs. According to Poverty Report 2000, published by the UNDP, poverty has incresed since the late 1970s and mostly in rural areas where 84 per cent of total population of the country reside. The report further says that poverty has increased at the rate of 3.1 per cent between mid-1980s and mid-1990s in Nepal. This rate of poverty growth is the highest in South Asia.

Since the beginning of the periodic five year plan in 1956, Nepal has been continuously exercising for the developmental strategies. It has completed eight periodic plans and Ninth is on its way to completion, Indicating insufficiency of past efforts in touching the underlying causes of poverty and concerning more for future, the Ninth Plan has poverty alleviation as its main objective.

Previously all attempts were not successful in initiating active participation of the rural poor for their own upliftment and development. Consequently, the attempts could not produce results envisaged.

After the revival of multiparty democracy in 1990, the new governing system has focused on people both as instrument and as the objective of development. Special emphasis is being given to the participatory development efforts based on the concept of decentralisation for all round development. The government is launching development programmes based on enabling local government and people’s empowerment at the local level.

The concept of development through decentralisation is not actually new. It was introduced in Nepal in early 1960s. Different Acts and regulations were promulgated and amended. But as the ruling system itself was not in line with decentralisation, the attempts could not pave the right way to the process of decentralisation.

However, after the restoration of democracy in 1990, democratic government advocated decentralisation to be more in compliance with democracy and accepted it in the Directive Principles of the new constitution as a medium for delivering the outcomes of democracy by increasing public participation in the polity. In the attempts of strengthening decentralisation and good governance the governments in the last ten years have passed different bills and launched different programmes.

The Eighth Plan augmented decentralisation to make people residing in the rural and urban areas powerful and capable in the management of their development by involving them in decision making process and to limit the role of the government as a facilitator. Various projects and programmes such as Participatory District Development Programme and Local Governance Programme have been launched to enhance planning and management capacity of the local authorities. The Ninth Plan has an objective of poverty reduction by enhancing peoples’ participation in planning, decision making and managing local needs and activities.

The Local Self-Governance Act passed in 1999 is one of the major breakthroughs in decentralisation exercises. The Act has widened the power and authority of local government institutions. It has given more authority of planning and making decisions, managing public functions, and revenue mobilisations to the local governments.

The steps taken by the democratic government towards recognising the sovereign status of people and institutionalising local government through devolution of responsibilities and authorities for local level activities are praiseworthy. However these increased authorities are followed by many queries. Does the wider framework of Local Self-Governance Act befit well in the midst of pervasive ignorance, widespread poverty and low human and institutional capacity and capability? How are the Local Government Institutions functioning and are they in a position to carryout the increased responsibilities?

The ultimate goal of decentralisation in a country like Nepal is raising the living standard of general people and consolidation of marginalised sections in the mainstream of development. The government over the years has been doing so in the name of different poverty reduction projects/programmes (For instance, a certain percentage of the grant aid flowed by the central government to the VDCs have to be disbursed for the welfare of the marginalised). Whether the attempts worked out under decentralisation process is benefiting the targeted groups. Whether the grant aid flowed by government to Village Development Committees has reached to the marginalised sections.

True

It is true that local self-governments are essential for the purpose of local development as they can serve well to mobilise the local resources, promote public participation, facilitate prompt decisions and entrust greater responsibilities to the people. But whether the institutional capacity of local government institutions is able to do so, if not, what are the shortcomings? Are the policies and programmes of local government institutions directed towards rural poverty reduction? These questions need answers.

Computers And The New Generation

By Isha Acharya

THE GREATEST achievement of the last century is "Computer". Computer is not only an electronic device for storing and analysing informations fed into it, as the dictionary describes, but it has other uses too. It has its influence in each and every field. People from all walks of life use it. Computers have become one of the most important and influential luxuries of the present generation. In developed countries, it is used by young people everyday for work. entertainment, school, college etc. The people in developing countries too, are slowly following this trend.

We, the younger generation of today are the first generation to have become computer literate as early as the onset of adolescence. For most of our lives we have used computers so it is not surprising that our generation has become highly dependent on it. Computer in this century is a basic need. We need to be computer literate in order to keep up with the modern world.

Computer is just like a typewriter, without Internet. Internet gives life to it. We keep in touch with our relatives, friends and cousins via e-mail or we chat with them with the help of Internet. Computers work as phone, CD player, tape recorder, television, typewriter and many other things. So, we are highly depended on it. Frustration usually occurs when one cannot access computer and especially Internet. Student in developed world get upset when Internet service is down for even an hour. They get irritated and while off-line, many of these "stranded" students dial in every minute to see if the network is back on-line or not. We can see them walking up and down in the college corridor when the service is not available. Situations like these show that our generation is overly computer dependent.

In higher studies computers have become necessary more than ever. Students realise that computers are crucial for success. Even in our country, many students don't like to study in the schools or colleges where the computer facility is not provided. Every year the Internet users are growing rapidly. The courses on web pages and the use of student e-mail are increasing. In developed countries, computers make it possible for the students to interact with their teachers in large lecture halls. Computers have made the world so close that the entire world is like a global village. Students don't need to research outside their room because they can collect all the informations and do their work on the web of online-library system. Those who don't own a computer are at disadvantage because they need to spend extra time accessing computers.

This can harm a person's physical, mental and social life. Students are so observed within the vicinity of their coloured monitor that they lack time for physical exercises. Whole day sitting in one chair, and enjoying the world of Internet will surely not make them physically fit neither mentally alert. These avid computer users find social interaction boring and as a result interpersonal skills decline. Interpersonal skills cannot be learned easily or quickly at the speed of computers, it takes time to refine. The time that could be used for social interaction is lost in computers. As, the interpersonal skills determine the individual's social development we can well imagine the result of social development in these types of people.

The younger generation has grown up in the society where computers are the trend and we constantly reaffirm our dependence on them. Whether it is as a substitute at school or at work place, are as a substitute for rewarding school life, we have been using computers. If this trend continues our dependence will be greater as the computers continually offer to make our lives easier and more convenient. It is also the time to be aware of computer dependence and think to manage other activities of life too. Computers are very essential in modern times but in order to live in a society harmoniously and happily we need to think of other aspects of life too.

We need to give time for social gatherings, meeting people and social interaction in this way, we help ourselves to develop interpersonal skills and we can easily adapt ourselves in a new surrounding. Time has come, for us to realise our dependence on computers and keep balance between our social life and career.