In depth Analysis

Congress tussle to continue!

Kathmandu: Girija babu’s non achievement at New Delhi appears to have been overshadowed by new pressures in the capital to oust Girija babu from his Prime Ministers’ post from within the party.

At the latest, the Prime Minister appears to have won his round. He agrees that the leadership should be shifted to the new generation. But his supporters consider his leadership at the moment indispensable. And so they have taken to the media, private and official, to make the message clear.

What is not clear is whether Girija babu retains his majority in his parliamentary party. And so Girija insists on his central committee decisions where he is clear in the majority. An attempt by his detractors to shift the scene to the party’s parliamentary offices has been aborted.

A real exercise therefore, on counting heads is perhaps underway. More often than not, fence sitters confuse the numbers and, again, there is the neighboring force factor. Unless the no-confidence motion in the parliamentary party is registered, one will have to assume that Girija babu is getting the upper hand. This, despite claims, in the Bhattarai camp that they have the numbers.

Had they the numbers, then the scene would already have been different. It is not for nothing that Krishna Prasad Bhattarai has tried to abort meets through non-attendance. The Prime Minister’s strength is also seen in his refusal to give way to demands for an adhoc central committee and the dissolution of the current one where he is clearly in the majority. Kishunjee and his group, if they are now with the required numbers, must press the issue in order to gain the advantage they seek. Have central committee, will rule the congress roost. And so until Girija babu’ majority is broken there, it will be difficult to consolidate their-KPs- strength at the Pokhara convention.

As has been repeatedly stressed in these columns, congress politics at the moment is aimed at the Pokhara convention. The infighting will surely heighten.

This so far has been at the expense of governance in Nepal. Practically all-public sector enterprises remain paralyzed. Government files do not move and the bureaucracies are inept watchers of the power play that has been on for quite some time now. In reality, the exercise of Nepali politics has for quite some time been for power and its resources rather than for the governance.

Bamdev favors "new multi-party system"

Kathmandu: The General Secretary of the ML (Marxists-Leninists), Bam Dev Gautam is currently hitting the media headlines.

The reason is talked to be his contentious ideas and theories, which he wishes to implement in today’s context in the aftermath of what he perhaps prefers to call, the summary failure of the system currently in place in achieving the expected development even after the lapse of ten years plus.

In Bamdev’s conviction, the nation must now adopt a new system of governance as envisioned and penned by him.

The new set of theories and ideas regarding the new system of dispensation put forth by this controversial leader is currently under the scrutiny of the central committee of the party for its careful consideration. Sources close to the ML say that Gautam’s theories currently under feud in the party have created a stir and the members remain divided over the issue.

"Guatam’s ideas are simply amusing in today’s changed constitutional context as he indirectly wishes to bring in the constitutional monarch in the active leadership of the country which is next to impossible", commented an insider of the ML to this scribe.

Gautam has proposed in his paper that the election of the Prime Minister be left to the benevolence of the constitutional monarch for selection. This means that if any political personality wishes to become the Prime Minister of the nation, he would have to get "green signal" from the King.

According to Gautam, the Prime Minister thus certified by the monarch shall be responsible to the King, the parliament, the ethnic assembly and the nation. The formation of the cabinet by the Prime minister remains almost same as what we have today in this dispensation.

What is interesting of it all is that Gautam in his paper has forwarded a possible and effective "alternative" to this dispensation with the one envisioned by him to which he claims a "new multi-party system". To add to this Gautam has urged his party members to wage struggle at the earliest for the installation of the "new system" as "dreamt" by him.

Unconfirmed reports have it that Communist leader Bamdev Gautam met the Crown Prince at time when His Majesty was in London for his health check-up.

Whether the ML party currently in session will endorse or reject Bamdev’s mind-boggling proposal will perhaps determine the future course of the activities of the said party.

Congress rugby continues: Bhattarai and Koirala agree to disagree

Kathmandu: At the moment this story is being penned, Tuesday afternoon, the Prithivi highway is in a mess; the officials of the state owned corporations have gone on the rampage since well over a week or so causing the lay men untold sufferings; the Maoists have point blank stated that they were no more interested in talking to the government till a few of their minimum conditions were met with by the establishment and have concurrently stepped up their violence in various districts; and the fierce battle that is continuing in the ruling party since a week or so too appears not to have yielded positive results despite the two top old-boys reluctantly met each other Monday for a cup of tea at the Prime ministers' official residence.

All these put together springs out a scene that is surely jumbled and repulsive for the common men who are less interested in congress politics which at regular intervals of time creates unpleasant scenes and situations not only for their own activists but for the lay men as well.

A disinclined Bhattarai met finally his nearest and dearest political rival Prime minister Koirala and is supposed to have repeated his five point demands to be met by the latter or else the emerging situation would take its own course that might "destabilize" Koirala’s present position.

The five-point demand put forth by Bhattarai and his camp followers are namely; 1. Sher Bahadur Deuba be declared the acting president of the party; 2. A balanced cabinet is formed which houses equal number of followers from both the rival camps; 3. The dissolution of the present central committee of the party; 4. The shifting of the impending party convention by another three months facilitating it to be held some where in February or March next year; 5. Both top hats of the congress should assume the role of coordinators at time of the next convention plus the two must summarily declare that they would not contest the election for party’s presidency.

This is not all, the lengthened battle- an exposed one however- in between the two camps appears to have added one more condition making it six instead of five. The fresh being the formation of an impartial committee that would look the proceedings of the party’s election for presidency.

Interestingly, a section of the media close to Koirala coterie of the congress gave an impression to the public after KP and GP met each other Monday that "every thing had been settled between the two top hats and that the party has yet again united". However, the fact is that the two camps have yet to come to a final conclusion. This is surely "misinformation", commented a Bhattaraite. According to him, Bhattarai had to issue a press statement rejecting the official version of their meeting.

A jury comprising of the names favored by the two warring leaders has already been framed which will supposedly explore the meeting points between the two sets of contradicting views. This means that the two partners currently engaged in a skirmish have agreed to disagree. When committees are formed in Nepal, it is solely meant for shifting the issues temporarily, said an intellectual commenting on the fresh overtures seen in the congress camp.

Koiralaites say that the Prime minister is ready to convince the other camp by yielding to marginal matters such as bringing about a change in the central committee and effecting a reshuffle in the government. However, to expect Koirala will resign from his current posts of the Prime minister and the President of the party would simply be foolhardy.

"I have become the party president through the election and hence only at time of election if I get defeated I will have to relinquish this post", Koirala is talked to have told Bhattarai point blank.

Regarding his Prime Ministership, Koirala is supposed to have made it clear to Bhattarai that the parliamentary party has made him the prime minister and it is this party which could oust him if the opposite camp produced the required numbers and filed a motion against him in an official manner.

Looking at these two meaning loaded statements coming as it does from Koirala who wields double authority, it becomes pretty difficult to guess as to how his political rival could engineer Koirala’s ouster from either of the posts.

More so, the Bhattarai camp apparently has not collected the required magic numbers, which they need at time of pushing the motion against the Prime minister.

Those who understand the working style of Koirala and the lust for power what he possesses in him bluntly say that Koirala will not relinquish both of his current posts. At best he could convince his rivals with peripheral matters.

How can Koirala lose the temptation of greeting the Japanese Prime minister who is coming Nepal within ten days or so and how can Koirala say no to the UN Millennium Summit scheduled this September where he is all set to go with a band of his close fans and relatives. Add to this the chances of his dropping in Germany to take part in the 10th Anniversary of the Reunification of Germany.

This means that the ongoing congress rivalry will continue till Koirala finishes his ‘foren outings’.

If he survives till that time, he can manipulate his party members for yet another presidency.

Editors’ meet FNCCI President

Kathmandu: The Federation of the Nepalese Editors’ and Publishers’ Monday paid a courtesy call on the President of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers and Commerce and Industries-FNCCI-Pradip Kumar Shrestha at the latter’s office in Teku, Kathmandu.

During the rendezvous, the editors appraised Mr.Shrestha about the aims and the objectives for the establishment of the journalists’ federation. The delegation members also sought the help of the FNCCI president to bridge the gap that currently existed in between the Nepalese media men and the nation’s industrialists.

The journalists urged the FNCCI dignitary to remain compassionate over the dwindling financial situation of the tabloid newspapers and help develop a mechanism that took care of the advertisements to be offered to the tabloids, if possible, on a regular basis.

"The tabloid newspapers of Nepal were currently facing the problem of their very survival due to untold financial constraints", told the president of the editors’/publishers’ federation Mr.Devendra Gautam who was leading the delegation Monday.

In response, the FNCCI president Mr. Shrestha opined, " we can do a lot if we sit together for the steady growth of the industrialization process in the country and for the expansion of nation’s journalism".

Mr. Shrestha assured the delegation of his unconditional support for the growth of the tabloid newspapers both at the private and the official levels.

He also hinted that he would send a circular at the earliest to all the members of the FNCCI to remain affectionate over the newspapers’ financial problems.

The delegation comprised of Kamal Joshi, Gopal Budathoki , Puspa Pradhan, Dev Prakash Tripathi and Narendra Prasad Upadhyaya.

EU: French presidency agenda

Kathmandu: To recall, each member state belonging to the family of the European Union, EU, assumes the presidency of the Union for six months.

Thus, the French Republic succeeded Portugal from last July 2000, and is the current president of the European Union which will last till the end of this year.

France will be in charge of several major matters to be accomplished during its presidency.

In particular, say sources, it will have to organize the negotiations at the Inter governmental Conference-IGC, which opened in Brussels on February 14, 2000 this year.

The object of these talks is the reform of the European institutions. In order to ensure the smooth running of an enlarged Europe by about ten new members, work in this regard will relate to the composition of the Commission, on the extension of the scope of qualified majority voting, instead of by unanimous decision, and lastly, on adjusting the weighting of the votes of each member State within the Council of Ministers.

The Heads of State and of government of the European Union should sign the new treaty concluding the IGC in Nice-south of France- at the beginning of December this year.

At the same time, the member States will also expectedly discuss the construction of a European defense and work out a Charter of Basic Rights for European Citizens.

"Europe is not merely an economic, commercial and financial entity and it is a community of values based on democracy and this is why we shall attach great importance to working out a charter of fundamental rights for the Europeans, the object of which shall be to bring together not only civic and political rights, but economic and social rights too which are the basis of the distinctive character of Europe", said the French foreign minister Hubert Vedrine and Pierre Moscovici, minister with special responsibility for EU affairs, to the Label France upon the assumption of the EU presidency.

The affirmation of a common foreign policy and the setting up of a European defence system which have made considerable progress over the last few months, said the French foreign minister, will be among others great tasks underway to be taken up by French presidency.

Pak-Nepal relation remains "cordial"

Kathmandu: The Pakistan Embassy in close cooperation with the Nepal-Pakistan Friendship and Cultural Association and Everest K2 Society, Monday, observed the 53rd Independence Day of the Republic of Pakistan.

Pakistan celebrated this event in Nepal notably as the first Independence Day of this new millennium.

A galaxy of residential diplomats, high placed government officials, members of civil societies, journalists and intellectuals graced the Pakistani celebrations.

In her welcome address, the Pakistani Ambassador to the Nepali court, Ms.Fouzia Nasereen expressed her satisfaction over the ever-growing Pak-Nepal relationship and described the present state of bilateral relation as "cordial".

"Nepal-Pakistan relations draw their sustenance from geographical closeness and shared aspirations", added the Ambassador.

Talking on the existing changed contexts internationally and regionally both that stood at the moment, Ambassador Nasereen opined that "we are conscious of the dynamics of the changed international and regional environments and that the new realities pose serious challenges for the people of Pakistan". To cope the challenges confronting her nation, the government of Pakistan, has laid foundation, added the Ambassador, for a three-year road map to make the country resilient and economically, politically and socially vibrant and prosperous.

"’The government is doing its best to address the challenges facing the country both internally and externally by putting the policies that would help in achieving these objectives", concluded the Ambassador.

Later a cultural program, which depicted the various life styles of the Pakistani people, was presented for the attending participants.

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