OFF THE RECORD (Spotlight Weekly)

Consensus Sans Agenda

Each political party is harping on the mantra of national consensus to advance its own objectives. From Nepali Congress president Girija Prasad Koirala to Rastriya Prajatantra Party chief Surya Bahadur Thapa and from CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal to his CPN-ML counterpart Bamdev Gautam, proposals for national unanimity are in abundant supply. However, Koirala wants national consensus to rattle Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's government, while Thapa's intention is to share power on the Congress' coattails. The UML and ML, for their part, see the consensus platform as a way to widen the rift in the ruling party and reap their harvest. The interests of the architects of national consensus converge, though, when it comes to destabilizing the government.

Thapa : Harping on consensus

Thapa's Task

Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) leader and former prime minister Surya Bahadur Thapa asserted last week that his proposal for national consensus was intended to bring all democratic parties together to solve such burning national problems as the Maoist insurgency. In a 15-minute speech to an interaction program organized by the RPP, Thapa called on all mainstream parties to stand together in this hour of crisis. But what kind of consensus is Thapa trying to build when his RPP colleague Lokendra Bahadur Chand was conspicuous by his absence from the party forum? Wouldn't politicians in the RPP and other parties be better off by trying to build internal consensus?

Gautam's Victory

CPN-ML general secretary Bamdev Gautam's long-cherished dream of meeting with CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal as an equal was fulfilled last week. In the early days of their split, UML leaders refused to recognize the ML as a party. The UML exhausted their vocabulary in demonizing the ML leadership. This recent change of stance has paved the way for the unification of the country's two leading communist parties. Nepal has urged his one-time rival, C.P. Mainali, to join the bandwagon, but the influential ideologue is still keeping everyone guessing. Although Gautam has won this battle, it remains to be seen how long this episode of comradely camaraderie would last.

Unity In Making

Madan Krishna Shrestha has earned money, prestige and fame from the Nepalese film industry. His partnership with Haribansha Acharya proved such an early success that the duo decided to establish an entertainment company. Like many business partnerships, the two were in the process of breaking up their two-decade-old association. The failure of Shrestha's "Nagad Panch Lakh" TV show, however, seems to have saved their alliance. As both Shrestha and Acharya remain tight-lipped over the matter, their fans are enjoying the opportunity for speculation.

Acharya : Time to reunite

Lasting Legacy

The dead are remembered for their good words and deeds. Former finance secretary Dr. Thakurnath Panta, who passed away following cardiac failure last week, will be recalled for his incisive thoughts on Nepal's development experience. Just two days before his demise, Dr Panta, one of the prominent ex-bureaucrats of the country, was actively participating in Nepal Development Forum meetings. While Dr. Panta was critically evaluating policies formulated during his own tenure, nobody thought he was making his final observations on a subject so dear to him. Dr. Panta may no longer be with us physically, but his ideas will continue to inspire Nepalis.