Looterakhao@Nepal.com

The German philosopher Friedrich Neitzsche for whom the state is 'the coldest of cold monster' might well have also observed that corruption is the root of all social evils in Nepal had he been alive today. For us Nepali the saying goes beyond this. It is no more about corruption anymore rather it is about the crime against what we term today humanity. If the former president Slovodan Milosevic could be brought to trail and Joseph Estrada could be brought to bear the account why can not we Nepalese do the same and restore confidence in the masses that Nepalese people have greater faith in their democratic institution and that they had hoped for better days ahead when they launched Jana Andolan a decade ago?

Where does the flaw lie in our system? Why did it fail to accommodate that aspiration of the common man? Why did it fail to lift our morals that are so vital in the nation building processes? Who are we and who are they who govern us? What are the qualities they posses and what vision they hold for the country and for our children? What sorts of legacy they will leave behind upon which the future leaders of this nation can draw upon? Where is that sense of dignity one possessed during those formative years of our national unity? And whether there is any sense of affinity between the ordinary man and the state machinery? And what are our academics who have come to be seen as the donor- driven- beggars doing? Securing saris for their wives and Bhat twice a day? Holding seminar and debating upon the themes such as "Globalisation and its impact on Nepalese Society, Human Rights and Good Governance, Development Theories and applicability? How far removed and how cut off they are from the real lives happening? What is to be expected from leaders like K.P. Bhattarai who openly encourages petty corruption and does not see anything wrong with it? What is to be expected from G.P. Koirala, who does not have any agenda, does not know what the national priorities were and relies more upon his henchmen even to see whether things are in order. What is our foreign policy if any? How will Nepal benefit from the opportunity brought about by the process of globalization whilst still keeping its traditional moral and cultural values intact?

Not much can be expected from the present leadership whose prime motto seems to be pocketing money first. People are getting sick of hearing that democracy is in danger as if it was an endangered species and cannot be breed again once it is extinct from the land. But whose democracy and for whom and why? Their democracy, for them and only for themselves. Because by appealing to the masses to protect this system in place they can then safeguard their democracy and strengthened their respective party which in turn puts them in power and allows them to scup wealth from the national treasury. This is precisely why they want to preserve democracy in this land.

Democracy in Nepal is a jackpot whoever can hit it he comes out watering his mouth and acts in its defense. The managers of the erstwhile regime did so in order to save a system, which had almost become a milking cow for them. The same has been copied by today's shameless and ugly leaders who were running the system today albeit for themselves and their henchmen or even for their stooges. Rest of the people who were in millions has been given to duty to safeguard the dispensation so that the ugly men benefit. Millions of others who live in a objective misery can neither hit the jackpot nor can they understand its underlying causes.

The present people's movement sponsored by the Maoists is the response to the above-mentioned ills, which has not been yet addressed by the present establishment. The fact is that the reported continued addition in the numerical strength of the Maoists is the sole creation of the successive establishment(s) formed well after the advent of this new dispensation. The men who have joined the Maoists band today were definitely not alien nationals. Admittedly, it is the set of those destitute who have no means for two meals a day, no paracetamol for their ailing and malnourished children and it is the same lot who faces Himalayan sort of troubles in order to linger their almost human skeleton.

The present impasse in the parliament is understandable given the stand taken by both the government and the opposition party personnel. What we object most vehemently is the drawing up of the daily stipend- salaries from our treasury. We must warn them that if an employee fails to attend his office and does not do he job he is not supposed to grab the money illegally. It is this sad and most unacceptable phenomenon that opted to put the very headline of this column, Looterakhao@Nepal.com whose literal meaning is loot and eat Nepal if you can.

Headline | National | 5 Question  | 2nd Impression | International | Past |