NEPALI POLITICS

The Himalayan Times 1 September 2023 EC proposes NOTA Periodic election is called one of the basic pillars of democratic governance. Democracy can neither imagined nor materialised in any democratic country without holding periodic elections. It was pleasant to read “Election Commission proposes NOTA, suffrage right for Nepali citizens employed abroad” (THT, 29 August, Page 1) at such a time when the voters were demanding for many years for these clauses to be included in the existing electoral system. The EC has proposed a provision that gives voters a right to reject any candidate and for that, “ None of the Above ” (NOTA) sign should be included in the ballot paper. Another outstanding concern of the general public was the voting right for the migrant workers living abroad. As per the proposed amendment, the Election Commission (EC) has also suggested, among others, that a person who has already been elected twice through the proportional representation (PR) system be b...

The Himalayan Times 25 August 2023   Big three weakening federalism Nepal was officially declared a Federal Democratic Republic on May 28, 2008, by the first Constituent Assembly, even though it was unable to promulgate a new constitution. The federal system of governance was believed to ensure economic equality, prosperity, and social justice by eliminating discrimination and oppression based on class, caste, region, language, religion, and gender, created by the centralized, unitary system of governance as claimed by the major political parties. The political parties didn't deem it necessary to extensively deliberate and debate on federalism in order to establish general consensus among all the concerned authorities. Local levels, especially provincial governments have failed to meet people's expectations owing to the improper and weak organizational structures. The scary national economy, bad governance, rampant corruption at all levels of government, underminin...

The Himalayan Times 18 August 2023 Ganatantra in peril ?  According to political analysts, democracy is under threat as long as the leaders start acting in an authoritarian manner in the name of majority in the HoR. Chairman of Rastriya Janamorcha Chitra Bahadur KC has said six months ago in the House that democracy and the republic are in danger as the prime minister takes a vote of confidence every two months and engages in the game of breaking and forming the government. He opined that no party could get a clear majority under the existing electoral system . Therefore, most of the time was spent in forming and bringing down the government rather than seriously and collectively deliberating on the national agenda and peoples’ prime issues and concerns. Closely looking at the current political situation, where the 10-party coalition government and the main opposition seem to be flexing their political muscle against or for forming a high level commission to investiga...

The Himalayan Times 11 August 2023 Nation losing its dignity The November 20 election for the voters was not only for electing their new representatives, but also about selecting such representatives who could sincerely, realistically and appropriately address their issues and concerns, thus gradually relieving them from their hardships. However, instead of serving the people and the nation, most of the elected representatives have been using their positions to promote the interest of their political parties and their own. Corrupt politics and bad governance have been untiring issues in national politics for many years, especially in the last three decades. Bad governance is a major concern in national politics as the political leaders have failed to provide basic services as per the people’s expectation. Corruption is deeply embedded itself in the system, and it has become increasingly difficult to root it out. Almost all the past governments failed to create hope and conf...