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| OFF THE RECORD |
Deuba's Opportunity Former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala
seems to be maintaining a low profile these days, which a lot of his supporters simply
don't like. In fact, some members of Koirala's kitchen cabinet have started becoming
restive. At a recent dinner at the prime minister's official residence in Baluwatar,
Koirala's followers found an opportune moment to develop close contacts with Sher Bahadur
Deuba. Although the prime minister organized the dinner to discuss issues regarding the
imposition of the state of emergency, it turned out to be an opportunity for many to get
into Deuba's good books. Law & Injustice One can see violations of the marriage code
by those senior officials who are supposed to lead by example. Although the court has
issued a mandatory order for officials to strictly abide by the Social Reform Act, few
seem to be following it. Ministers, Supreme Court judges and the head of the
anti-corruption body, among other people, are seen to be violating the code with abandon.
It seems the growing complaints of how corruption and the distortion of the social order
have become the rule don't seem to have fallen on the right ears.
Politics of Politics CPN-UML general secretary and main
opposition leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has found his most favorite job: mobilizing
opposition parties against the government. As the CPN-UML and CPN-ML try to build closer
ties, Nepal's consensus-building exercise has allowed him to increase the frequency of his
contacts with one-time rival, ML general secretary Bam Dev Gautam. Regardless of Nepal's
success in achieving opposition unity, his initiative would definitely help him in his
quest to draw his former enemy closer. The politics of politics, as they say. Congress Rivalry
The Nepali Congress is known as a
party plagued by dissension, where almost every individual regards the other as a rival.
After his appointment as deputy general secretary of the party, former minister Govinda
Raj Joshi seems to have acquired a major voice in driving the internal agenda of the
ruling party. Joshi's ascendancy has angered former deputy prime minister and fellow
central committee member, Ram Chandra Poudel. As Joshi is known as party chief Girija
Prasad Koirala's blue-eyed boy, Poudel can do little apart from quietly siding with Prime
Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. Meanwhile, in his quest to sideline Poudel, Joshi ó who like
the former DPM represents Tanahun district — is trying to bring new ideas to maintain
the balance of power. Thapa's Tumult Rastriya Prajatantra Party leader Surya Bahadur Thapa is known for his roar. Wherever he goes, Thapa uses his high-decibel diction to send across his message loud and clear. From parliament to the public dais, Thapa can do without loudspeakers. When he was addressing the Reporter's Club recently, the public-address system fell silent for a while. But that didn't deter Thapa. He just turned up his own volume. When the loudspeakers were fixed, you couldn't really tell where the voice was coming from. Deuba's Opportunity
Former prime minister Girija Prasad
Koirala seems to be maintaining a low profile these days, which a lot of his supporters
simply don't like. In fact, some members of Koirala's kitchen cabinet have started
becoming restive. At a recent dinner at the prime minister's official residence in
Baluwatar, Koirala's followers found an opportune moment to develop close contacts with
Sher Bahadur Deuba. Although the prime minister organized the dinner to discuss issues
regarding the imposition of the state of emergency, it turned out to be an opportunity for
many to get into Deuba's good books. Law & Injustice One can see violations of the marriage code
by those senior officials who are supposed to lead by example. Although the court has
issued a mandatory order for officials to strictly abide by the Social Reform Act, few
seem to be following it. Ministers, Supreme Court judges and the head of the
anti-corruption body, among other people, are seen to be violating the code with abandon.
It seems the growing complaints of how corruption and the distortion of the social order
have become the rule don't seem to have fallen on the right ears. Politics of Politics CPN-UML general secretary and main
opposition leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has found his most favorite job: mobilizing
opposition parties against the government. As the CPN-UML and CPN-ML try to build closer
ties, Nepal's consensus-building exercise has allowed him to increase the frequency of his
contacts with one-time rival, ML general secretary Bam Dev Gautam. Regardless of Nepal's
success in achieving opposition unity, his initiative would definitely help him in his
quest to draw his former enemy closer. The politics of politics, as they say. Congress Rivalry The Nepali Congress is known as a party
plagued by dissension, where almost every individual regards the other as a rival. After
his appointment as deputy general secretary of the party, former minister Govinda Raj
Joshi seems to have acquired a major voice in driving the internal agenda of the ruling
party. Joshi's ascendancy has angered former deputy prime minister and fellow central
committee member, Ram Chandra Poudel. As Joshi is known as party chief Girija Prasad
Koirala's blue-eyed boy, Poudel can do little apart from quietly siding with Prime
Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. Meanwhile, in his quest to sideline Poudel, Joshi ó who like
the former DPM represents Tanahun district — is trying to bring new ideas to maintain
the balance of power. Thapa's Tumult Rastriya Prajatantra Party leader Surya Bahadur Thapa is known for his roar. Wherever he goes, Thapa uses his high-decibel diction to send across his message loud and clear. From parliament to the public dais, Thapa can do without loudspeakers. When he was addressing the Reporter's Club recently, the public-address system fell silent for a while. But that didn't deter Thapa. He just turned up his own volume. When the loudspeakers were fixed, you couldn't really tell where the voice was coming from. |
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editor: spotligh@mos.com.np |
