By P. Kharel TIP OF ICEBERG Forged documents led unscrupulous foreigners obtaining Nepalese citizenship numbering 339, according to a news report carried by Naya Patrika daily. Predictably, most of them were Indian nationals. There could be many more. “This is only the tip of the iceberg,” said a former senior bureaucrat to this pen pusher. Those recommending the culprits and authorities responsible for scrutinising the documents should be brought under strict scanner for investigation. However, the fact remains: No one dares to dig deep and act appropriately. Occasional disclosures would not address the menace effectively to override the relentless encroachment whose consequences the Nepalese are bound to feel its worst by the time it might be too late for any correction. No corrupt bureaucracy can cope with such infiltration and assaults. Bribe money buys loyalty and cancerously creeps against a nation’s vital interests. This has been demonstrated and emphasised by incidents and cases on numerous occasions in especially poor countries. No wonder, the French national Charles Shobraj, since long serving jail sentence in Kathmandu after conviction for murder, wrote in his book, when he was on the run from law more than two decades ago, that someone with enough resources could drive even an elephant through the Tribhuvan international airport’s without the customs officials noting of the transaction. DELAYED NCP UNITY Spirits among a large section of Nepalese communists seemed to have recorded a dramatic spurt when the KP Oli-led CPN (UML) and Pushpa Kamal Dahal-steered Maoist Centre last year announced unification between the two parties. With it, their violent past also got merged, owning up also their past deeds and misdeeds perpetrated in the name of “the downtrodden, suppressed and exploited”. However, in the absence of the long-awaited unification, including formation of organisational units down to the village ward levels, frustration grips most of the rank and file in the two-headed Nepal Communist Party (NCP). Could the NCP unification’s delay be the work of a few members close to either of the twin presidents? The Maoist faction feels the ambitious chief ministers of Province Nos. 1 and 5, Sher Dhan Rai and Shankar Pokharel, guilty of stalling the unification process. On their part, UML leaders put the blame on Dahal’s coterie, including “Krishna Bahadur Mahara, Ram Bahadur Badal and Company” for the stalemate. Nepal hosts the largest number of communist parties in South Asia and beyond. It is also true that the NCP government at the centre enjoys two-thirds majority. This is something no other communist government enjoyed in history in terms of democratic elections vetted as appropriately held by international poll observers. ROYAL ROUTE Crowds swell along the route the former king and queen take during their local trips in the course of regional visits in Nepal. The latest such scenes were in Simara and cities in Eastern Nepal. Informers in government agencies observe so, not to speak of pro-monarchists who sound excited over monarchy’s “impending” return. In the last few weeks, newspapers have been carrying reports, comments and letter column reactions comparing the current national mess with the past in anticipation of royalty’s revival. Jana Morcha leader Chitra Bahadur KC warns that the ruling parties are laying down the bricks for royalty’s comeback. Prime Minister KP Oli’s party spokesman Narayan Kaji Shrestha reportedly said that if the situation in Nepal goes as it is, monarchy could return within a year. Dr KB Rokaya, who formerly served as the armed Maoists’ backbone in boosting international ties, has declared that monarchy’s return was a “certainty and people can be prepared to celebrate the return” anytime soon. The regularity with which opinion makers and party members have been anticipating or warning of monarchy’s return has changed the sound and sight of the situation. Those submitting written or oral requests for royal audience seem to grow in numbers during the former royals’ regional visits. A very interesting aspect of this all is that many local members of various mainstream political parties, including Maoists, line up to greet the former king. How times change! And yet much more could be on the anvil. Very important problem National Sports Council is in the grip of what it perceives as a very, very important problem. It is to do with the VVIP parapet being constructed at the Nepalgunj stadium. NSC member-secretary Keshav Kumar Bista attributes the latest delay in organsing the 8th National Games to the incompletion of the VVIP section marked for very, very important persons. Materials destined for the stadium project got held up because of disturbances at Calcutta port. Last fortnight Bista made yet another assurance that this time the Games would be held by mid-April. Nepalese athletes have been on the state of “On your mark” since years; now they are on “get set” mood, that is, if they put faith in Bista who has rescheduled the meet dates again and again too frequently for reliability. Given the weaknesses in the sporting management, no one can be certain about the National Games taking off with the decisive “Go!” Hence all that athletes and sports enthusiasts in general can do is to cross their fingers for the best after the inordinate delay and frustrating postponements galore. Without comment Shambhu Shrestha, editor of Drishti weekly: “The problems of people in general have hardened so much that it has become extremely difficult for the honest to live in this country.”