Unstoppable Balen

The Balen led government appears to be a proactive government aggressively performing its constructive roles in the areas of agriculture, industry, technology, health, education, justice and infrastructure for the solution of problems which were the nation and the people facing for the last three decades. It marks a paradigm shift from the earlier sluggish government performance to boosting public confidence in state institutions, through administrative reforms and management discipline, efficiency and performance.

The collapse of the Oli led government was rapid. The immediate trigger for the protests in the streets was the then government’s decision to ban 26 social-media channels, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, WhatsApp and YouTube, for failing to meet a deadline to register with the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology. The move was justified as a means of enforcing a digital-services tax. However, it was widely seen as a means of shutting down free speech, and in particular a social media ‘nepo kid’ campaign that highlighted the lavish lifestyles of various politicians’ children, contrasting them with the realities of the common people facing unemployment or migration.

PM Belan’s silent works are eloquent, briskly blustery and louder looking closely at the on-going performance of his government. Digital platforms incarnate his vision and viewpoints everyday arousing feelings of people and mustering support. In any case, this moment marks a reset in national politics. Beyond the decimation of the NC and the left forces, parties that derived power from ethnic and caste groups were also almost entirely wiped out.

The RSP’s overwhelming victory in the recent election and Balen’s framing of his Madhesi roots within a broader national identity and his satisfying performance as the Kathmandu Mayer have been the strong political and societal basis for them to overhaul the old and corrupt political and bureaucratic systems and lead the nation towards prosperity.