Good Governance: Need for Strengthening Democracy in Nepal

- Dr. Suman Dhakal

The general and literary meaning of governance is government, act and manner of governing, control and so on. But at the present context of participatory democracy the common meaning of the term has become passé and is widely and popularly associated with various aspects of the development of a democratic society.

Different organizations, institutions and experts concerned have defined good governance in various ways. Governance is opined as the capacity of the state and civil society "to sustain itself under the constitutional setting in order to move towards avowed goals, reduce the inherent cleavages among social, cultural, political systems and communities, concert sound policies, mobilize resources and maintain the sufficient level of legitimacy, transparency, credibility and accountability before the public" (Bongartz and Dahal, 1996:56). The World Bank defines governance as the manner in which political power is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social resources. It has identified three distinct aspects of governance: (1) the form of political regime, (2) the process by which authority is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social resources for development and (3) the capacity of government to design, formulate, and implement policies and discharge functions (The World Bank, 1994; xiv). UNDP defines the terminology as the exercise of economic, political and administrative authority to manage a country’s affairs at all levels (UNDP, 1997: pp 2-3). It comprises mechanisms, processes and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their differences. UN Secretary General Kofi Annan views good governance as ensuring respect for human rights and the rule of law, strengthening democracy, promoting transparency and capacity in public administration. Good Governance is as Commission on Global governance points out "the sum of the many ways individuals and institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs" (Commission on Global Governance, 1995:2). It is a continuing process through which conflicting or diverse interests may be accommodated and cooperative action may be taken. It includes formal institutions as regimes empowered to enforce compliance, as well as informal arrangements that people and institutions either have agreed to perceive to be in their interest.

The major principles of good governance that is universally recognized are accountability, responsibility, legitimacy and transparency. In absence of these major concepts good governance, in real sense, can never be imagined. Accountability "denotes the effectiveness with which the governed can exercise influence over their governors; legitimacy is concerned with the right of the state to exercise power over its citizens, and the extent to which these powers are perceived to be rightly exercised, and transparency is founded on the existence of mechanisms for ensuring public access to decision-making" (Dahal, 1996:5). "Accountability, in the exercise of power and utilization of resources, responsiveness to wishes of the people; integrity and transparency in the conduct of government efficiency and effectiveness" are the elements of good government. "Common good justice, rule of law, openness wise stewardship of scarce public resources are some of the values that result from good governance" (Sharma: 1998, 32)

Going through these definitions, concepts and features of good governance put forward by various writers and experts concerned, we may conclude that good governance is highly associated with political and bureaucratic accountability, responsibility, legitimacy and transparency. Moreover it includes a fair and reliable judicial system. Freedom of information and expression and effective and efficient public sector management and co-operation with civil society organizations are also closely related to it. To consolidate good governance visionary leadership, effective decentralization of power and efficient local capacity building process through popular participation be must.

The Panchayat political system was challenged by the popular upsurge in 1990, as a result of which, the party less polity got supplanted by multiparty democracy. With this, the democratic political process was reintroduced. The Constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990 has vested sovereign power in people making them the source of power. Moreover, it provided multiparty democracy, human rights, and constitutional monarchy as the basic structures placing them in the pedestal of immutable constitutional values.

The preamble of the constitution focuses the need for maximum popular participation in the affairs of the state. It also pronounces its intent to consolidate adult franchise, multiparty parliamentary system of the government and constitutional monarchy, among others.

"The Directive principles and policies of the State" stated by the Article 24 of the constitution emphasizes the goal of a balanced development through mobilization of resources in a manner beneficial to the interests of the nation and the people. It also requires the state to pursue a policy, which creates conditions for acceleration of rural development. Article 24 – 26 of the constitution is more specific as it obliges the state to maintain conditions suitable to the enjoyment of the fruits of democracy through larger participation of people in the governance of the state by way of decentralization. Thus the Directive Principles and Policies of the State under the Articles of the Constitution of 1990 clearly pinpoint the common attributes of good governance.

A bi-cameral legislature (House of Representatives and National Assembly) with King-in-council, was bestowed by the constitution to consolidate multiparty democracy. Parliament, the representative legislative organ of the peoples’ sovereignty, is the guiding force of the system. The 205 members of the lower house (House of Representatives) are directly elected by the people on the basis of adult suffrage. The upper house (National Assembly) consists 60 members, out of which fifteen members, three each the development region, are to be elected by the electoral college consisting of the Chairman and Deputy-Chairman of Village Development Committees, Mayor and Deputy-Mayor of municipalities, Chief and Deputy-Chief and members of the District Development Committees. The lower house elects 35 members on the basis of proportional representation under the criterion of single transferable voting system, where as the rest 10 members are to be nominated by the Crown (Art.46). The compulsion of five percent seat to women of the total number of candidates for the election to the House of Representatives from any party or organization (Art.114) has undoubtedly encouraged women’s participation in the nation’s politics. It will be an encouraging matter to a pluralist sense of justice in the long run. The Cabinet, which exercises executive power, is accountable to the parliament and the parliament to the voters. However there is no constitutional provision to recall them. Only the lower house can pass the vote of no confidence against the Cabinet.

The Supreme Court, which is the highest court in the three-tier judicial system propounded by the constitution, serves as the independent and fair judiciary. It is entrusted with important powers, including the power to protect the constitution and the fundamental rights guaranteed to the people under part 3 (Arts.11-23) of the Constitution. The office of the Attorney General constituted under part 16 (Art.109-111) of the constitution entrusted the Attorney General the task of giving advice and opinion regarding constitutional and legal matters to His Majesty’s government and such other authorities and to act as Chief Legal Advisor to the government. He is made more accountable to the people representatives through legal right provided him to express his opinion on any legal question raised in parliament. The Constitution of Nepal 1990 also embodies the Auditor General of Nepal with the task of maintaining proper and scientific bookkeeping and auditing system (Arts.99-100). The commission for investigation of the Abuse of Authority has been established to investigate and expose the misuse of authority by improper or corrupt deeds of any person holding public offices. There is also a Public Service Commission, which selects suitable and competitive candidates to be appointed in various posts of civil services through examinations.

The constitution also provides a Constitutional Council consisting Prime Minister as Chairman and Chief Justice, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chairman of the National Assembly, and the leader of the major opposition party in the Lower House as members. The council recommends for the appointments of officials to the constitutional bodies (Art.117). This provision definitely broadened the boundary of recommendation. The provision of the National Defense Council (Art.118), consisting PM as Chairman and Defense Minister and Commander-in-Chief as members, to recommend the King for the administration and deployment of the Royal Nepalese Army accepts the concept of civilian control over the Nepalese Military force. Article 126 of the constitution makes government accountable to the peoples representatives, because the ratification, acceptance, accession and approval of treaty and agreements by the parliament be must. Besides, the right to information provided by the constitution to the Nepalese citizen made the system transparent. Article 16 of the constitution mentions that every citizen would have the right to demand and receive information on any public importance, except those to be kept secret according to law.

Going through all these constitutional provisions bestowed by the constitution of the Kingdom of Nepal 1990, we can say that it has followed the universally accepted basic tenets of good governance, i.e. responsibility, accountability and transparency. Not only the constitution but also the various laws and acts framed after 1990. i.e. the Local-self government Act 1999, Bill passed by the Parliament regarding the property right to women and the formation of commission on human rights, women rights, and high level commission to investigate illegal properties have encouraged the concept of good governance within the system.

After the restoration of multiparty political system, the people have expected for the better days for themselves, better opportunities by exploring new areas of development. The constitution assures the protection and promotion of human rights and encouraged for liberal economic policies. The Constitution also defines the major objectives of the state to promote the conditions for welfare of the people on the basis of the principles of open society by establishing a just system in all aspects of human life, social, political, economic and cultural. It also assures the protection of life, liberty and property of the people. But, if an honest view of the national scenario is cast, momentum of progress of the country in social, political, economic and cultural fronts is not evident since the multiparty based democratic government took over the helm of the nation for the last twelve years. It is naturally expected out of a popular government created by the people’s movement that some positive signals of progress should come despite various limitations.

At present, the multiparty democracy in Nepal is considered as the effluent’s luxury since the people have viewed that nothing has been given to them except hatred, civil insecurity, intolerance, killings and fighting between rival political groups and so on. Economically people are facing unprecedented raise of the prices in essential consumer goods, growing unemployment, scarcity, poverty and hunger and low national productivity, declining purchasing capacity and other hardships.

Regarding the practical side of the implementation of the constitutional provisions and other democratic norms and activities, the record of the government has remained wanting. The governments’ attitude seems to be to rule the people, rather than to serve them.

Besides, the leaders of all the political parties are primarily responsible for making a mockery of democracy. In the name of democracy, hypocrisy is being practiced by the political activists and their leaders associated with different political parties. There exists a wide gap between rhetoric and achievement, between policies and implementation. All the political parties, despite their rhetoric and public utterances, failed to create a sound democratic political culture based on the pluralistic characteristics of the society. As a result, the system is facing unprecedented challenges. The misuse of power resources by the political leaders is virtually the same as it was in the past regime of party less Panchayat system. In some cases it is argued that they have even surpassed the previous regime.

The leaders of political parties are more vocal than anyone else giving big speeches against corruption, but in reality, the system itself seems to protect the corrupt and commission-fed politicians. Slipper wearer politicians of the past days are overnight becoming the owner of huge building, lands, expensive vehicles and other luxurious commodities. Instead of creating a sound democratic culture, they are engaged in promoting Prado/Pajero culture to fulfill their own mean interests.

Since the reinstallation of multiparty system in Nepal, there is the mushrooming of NGOs and INGOs in central and local levels. They have developed as a prominent force with considerable influence on government policy making. Alongside their assistance programs, they carry out research and provide input into policy process. But there is a vacuum in the management of NGOs. Also there is a lack of facilitating legislation to promote NGO’s involvement in development. Most of the NGOs are considered as business center for quick and easy money and priority has been given to the projects set by the donors without caring for adverse side effects and work ethics. The NGOs are directing their attention more to implementing donor-supported projects than to policy advocacy and the donor community is also increasingly using them only as service delivery agencies. A further drawback there is the politically partisan nature of various NGOs.

The mass media also have done very little to strengthen democracy. They are very weak and extremely biased because of their politically tilted nature to one or the other parties. Private print media simply has become party bulletin due to their financial and resource dependency on political parties, whereas the public media remain a humble servant of the ruling authority. Instead of helping the people with correct information, the media has become the mouthpiece of either governing elites or the political parties and leaders.

The result of all these political anomalies is that accountability, transparency and rule of law are severely compromised. Public resources are grossly misused. The country is facing a series of problems. The ongoing undemocratic practices in the name of democracy gave birth to the Maoist insurgency and instead of achieving good governance under multiparty democracy the people are bounded to endure "the state of Emergency" in the name of sustaining and strengthening democracy in the country. As a result of which people are gradually starting losing faith in such a non-performing and non-delivering democracy where they have been deceived with empty promises assured by the leaders and party-men. Democracy becomes meaningless if it is degenerated into hypocrisy.

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