Idiotic Politicians In Nepal

Siddhi B. Ranjitkar

The current political deadlock has forced the Maoists to launch the street Movement for restoring the people’s suzerainty and for correcting the unconstitutional action of the ceremonial President according to the Maoist leaders whereas the so-called parliamentary leaders have been trumpeting that the Maoists have been trying to topple the government through the street movement rather than following the parliamentary procedures. The parliamentary leaders have been claiming to be the most democratic refusing the Maoists’ demand for debating the undemocratic and unconstitutional action of the President at the legislature. The so-called parliamentary leaders have grabbed the power through the unconstitutional action of the President and want to stick to the power at any cost to the nation.

President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav has been the first President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal and has been the first idiotic politician following the advice of the unethical politicians of the eighteen political parties including two major political parties such as Nepali Congress (NC) and Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist and Leninist (CPN-UML) rather than following the Constitution of Nepal of 2007. Dr. Yadav had been saying in public that he had simply followed the urge of the leaders of the eighteen political parties. Is Dr. Yadav not become an idiot following the wishes of the leaders of the eighteen political parties rather than following the Interim Constitution of Nepal?

Dr. Yadav had been a democratic politician throughout his life but at the time as a President when he needed to defend the infant democracy and the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 he violated the democratic norms and values going beyond the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 and placed him to the position of the pantheon of unprincipled politicians in Nepal and giving the Maoists an excuse to finish off the parliamentary system through the street movement this time.

The second most idiotic politician has been Former Prime Minister Prachanda. He has been the Prime Minister to lead twenty-four political parties if not twenty-five including the NC but he has failed to do so because of the people’s strength he thinks he has possessed. He was supposed to lead all political leaders including Girija Prasad Koirala following the consensus politics. However, he has reached the stage of the total isolation at the time when he took the actions against the undisciplined Chief of Army Staff. He would have been wise if he convinced other political leaders of the need for taking actions against the undisciplined army chief before moving on to the concrete actions.

In the democratic system, any leader needs to persuade others to follow him/her rather than following others. Prachanda has simply followed other leaders of his party for taking the actions against the army chief and then quitting the government. Both the actions have been disastrous to the nation, as the nation has to go through the political uncertainty. It might be the creation of the Maoists to pave the way for finishing off the parliamentary system through the peaceful movement. They have the experiences in both the peaceful movement and the armed revolution. This time they would use the peaceful movement to grab the power again.

The third most idiotic politician is Chairman of CPN-UML Jhalanath Khanal. He has been not only the unwise politician but also the political flip-flop. First of all he did not keep the words given to the then Prime Minister Prachanda for the support for taking actions against the unscrupulous army chief. Then, he switched his support for other leaders to going against the actions when Prachanda actually took the actions against the army chief. He led the immoral politicians of the eighteen political parties to the President and made the President an unprincipled person, too, pushing him to abuse the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 for directly writing a letter to the Chief of Army Staff overriding the decision of the Prime Minister on firing the Chief of Army Staff. Thus, Mr. Khanal has not only betrayed the then Prime Minister but also the voters that had voted for him for a strong political leadership following the democratic values and norms.

Disregarding the ideology of his party and his own political principles, and pushing the President to abuse the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007, Chairman Khanal became an idiotic politician. So, his political flip-flop and disregard for political principles have led him to be a weak leader of his party despite he has won the election for the Constituent Assembly and for the Chairman of his party. So, his colleague has been challenging him to any political decisions he has been taking in his party. His colleague KP Oli has been setting up institutions parallel to the institutions of his party and even has been holding events parallel to his events.

The worst idiotic politician has been Girija Prasad Koirala. He does not follow any political ideology although he claims to be a social democrat. He has neither the character of a socialist nor of a democrat. He has sold several state-owned companies to benefit his friends and relatives in the past when he was a Prime Minister and currently he has been killing democracy just to put his daughter to the position of Deputy Prime Minster and let her stick to the power despite the opposition of the members of the Central Working Committee and parliamentary party leader of the NC. If he were a democratic leader he would never push the President to commit the most political fault of abusing the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007. He has even asked another NC leader Narahari Acharya explanations for stating the President’s move on directly writing a letter to the Chief of Army Staff has been unconstitutional and undemocratic.

All other so-called democratic leaders of the NC and the CPN-UML have been trumpeting the President’s move on directly writing a letter to the Chief of Army Staff is constitutional and they have been refusing even to debate it at the legislature pushing the Maoists to the street movement and the Maoist legislators to hold the legislature hostage. If they were really democrats rather than idiotic politicians they would never push the President to abuse the constitution and then they would never refuse to discuss anything concerning the President at the legislature. Currently, they have been putting the President above the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 stating they could not debate any matter concerning the President at the legislature forgetting that they had once fought against the then regime for the rights to hold debate over the matters concerning the then king at the then legislature and even though they know that the legislature is the supreme institution and there is nothing and nobody above it, as the legislature is the body of the people’s representatives and is the symbol of the people’s suzerainty.

The only thing that has prevented these deceitful politicians to debate the President’s action at the legislature is the power they have grabbed pushing the ceremonial President to commit a political felony of abusing the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007. They know that if they were to debate it at the legislature they would have to accept the President’s action undemocratic and unconstitutional. Even though they have been bankrupt of political ethics they would need to accept the decision of the legislature and they naturally need to quit the government.

They are neither concerned with the vital matters of writing a new constitution nor to institutionalize the infant republic and form states and then unite them into a federation. These cheating politicians have been deadly against federation and for the socio-economic development of ethnic groups and communities. They do not want to see the inclusive state administration, police and army so the government has been lethargic to enforce the agreements the government has reached with the Madheshi political parties in the past. If they continue to be so arrogant and are not willing to give rights and duties to the ethnic groups and communities they would simply invite another movement risking the country at the political instability.

Current Prime Minister Madhav Nepal is neither a politician of principles and ideology nor the man of honesty but has been a worst unethical politician. He did not feel ashamed of going to the palace and apply for the position of the Prime Minister the former king had once advertised for. He lost the people’s mandate but he has continued to trumpet he is a democratically elected Prime Minister. He did not feel that he has been committing a political felony staying on in power without the people’s mandate. He has been standing on the shoulders of the unprincipled politicians. These politicians have disregarded everything concerning democracy and have been for making one of the worst idiotic politicians a Prime Minister.

If it finally dawns on the minds of the dishonorable politicians that they have committed a mistake pushing the President to abuse the constitution and then another mistake refusing to debate it at the legislature, then they would certainly agree to debate the President’s unconstitutional action at the legislature and make the President a scapegoat and ask him to resign. They would also reinstate the then Prime Minister to the office and then debate his actions of firing the Chief of Army Staff at the legislature whether it is constitutional or not if not then they would punish him, too. However, such things would dawn on the minds of the evil-minded politicians and lead the country to the political stability is hard to believe.

The Maoists have been determined to force the current government out of office. The goal of the second round of movement might be to displace the current government. Their ultimate declared goal is to finish off the parliamentary system and implant a new multi-party system. They have been saying that they would never accept the parliamentary system as it has brought political evils and political corruption along with other socio-economic evils in Nepal.

The pressure of the international community on the political leaders of Nepal has been strongly felt after the Maoists calling off the shutdown of the international airport on the call of the international community and one of the vociferous opponents of the Maoists, KP Oli calling a meeting of the leaders of the three major political parties such as UCPN-Maoist, NC and CPN-UML at his residence on November 3, 2009 to come to the consensus politics. However, the meeting has not resulted in success, yet.

If the international community can make Hamid Karzi the third term President of Afghanistan forcing his strong opponent Dr. Abdullah Abdullah to take back his candidacy for the Presidency, and force the government to negotiate with the deposed President in Honduras for putting the democracy back on track why not in Nepal forcing the President to apologize to the public for his unconstitutional act and forming a national consensus government and writing a new constitution in Nepal put back the rupture constitutional order. The main hurdle might be the neighbor that claims to be the largest democracy but runs the country with the discretions of the influential leaders, and attempts to put the sycophants in power in the neighboring countries.

In the meeting with the Speaker of the legislature on November 3, 2009, the President has said that he wants to see the legislature strong and honorable. However, he is one of the main characters that have made it a useless institution and the hostage of the legislators. If the President is really means what he has said to the Speaker then he needs to go to the legislature and apologize to the people’s representatives for rupturing the Interim Constitution of Nepal of 2007 and put the democracy back on track.

The only way the parliamentary politicians could strengthen democracy is making the legislature a supreme institution and debating anything concerning the Nepalese people in it and not letting hold it hostage for anything. Again, it is hard to believe that an idea of anything of this sort would dawn in the minds of the evil-minded politicians. They are certainly for sticking to the power they have unscrupulously grabbed. The current leaders of the twenty-two political parties engaging in supporting the most undemocratic action of the President on directly writing a letter to the Chief of Army Staff, and engaging in the head-on confrontation with the Maoists that have been demanding to correct such an unconstitutional action of the President are certainly going to prove the current confrontation between the undemocratic and democratic forces ultimately proving the Maoists democratic forces.

November 7, 2009.