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By Deepak Joshi Pokhrel

A close friend of mine recently posted his thoughts on his Facebook wall, “Nepalese are either dying in the plane crash or road mishap and it seems we are born to suffer”. His thoughts seem very true as we are born to suffer — politically and economically — with no sign of ebbing.

Nepal’s journey towards democracy has been very long. It all began in 1950s. But it hit a snag about a decade later when then King Mahendra dismissed the elected democratic government and imposed the Panchyat system. Under the partyless system, Nepal endured thirty years of political suppression — political parties were banned and democratic activities were virtually non-existent.

However, with joint struggles known in Nepali history as Jana Aandolan, the restoration of democracy was possible in 1990 with the overthrowing of the Panchayat system. This marked the beginning of a new beginning in which people were able to script their own future.

Multiparty democracy was restored with the adoption of the West Minister parliamentary system. A new open democratic system was established though the king used to titular head of the country.

Nepali Congress won a majority in a parliamentary election and formed the government. Initially, it took several praiseworthy steps for the overall development of the nation. However owing to internal conflict and struggles inside the party, the then PM dissolved the parliament and announced the mid-term election.

That particular incident became a catalyst for political instability in the country. In the years that followed, Nepal plunged into a vicious cycle of political instability with forming and dismantling the government becoming the regular affair of the political parties and their leaders.

In over 16 years, there were thirteen governments formed. Some were led by the centrist while others were led by the leftist. Few even could not complete nine months let alone their full term. The reason for this forming and dismantling of the government was power-sharing over the political parties as they wanted a bigger share of the pie.

When we bid adieu to the monarchy, we hoped that we would be able to transform the nation- socially, economically, politically and culturally. Further, we expected that there would be good governance, effective service delivery and rule of law will prevail. Contrary to our expectations, the present politicians are more unaccountable, untransparent, ruthless, self-centred and egoistic. Their only intention is to remain in power and no matter how it comes they are not concerned about how people are struggling with their day-to-day problems.

While our immediate neighbors China and India are making rapid strides in economic development, economic growth remains very dismal in Nepal. This is because economic inequality continues to flourish as certain individuals benefit from bhagbhanda politics and nepotism widening the gap between haves and have-nots. Consequently, this fuels social disparity posing a threat to Nepal’s political system enshrined in the constitution of Nepal 2015.

The politics of bhagbhanda is thriving with political parties of divergent ideologies scrambling for their share of the pie. There is a frustration among the people.  Job opportunities are very scarce and whatever is available is only meant for those who have political connections. As a result, there is a mass exodus of competent youth to foreign countries in search of green pasture. Confidence in domestic education is dwindling. Road accidents mainly due to poor road infrastructure and lax monitoring have become a daily occurrence.

The UNESCO figures show that the number of students from Nepal travelling abroad to study has more than doubled from 44,225 in 2017 to 95, 268 in 2002. At the same time, 45, 65,050 had left the country during the fiscal year 2020/21. Malaysia topped the destination for Nepalese laborers in Qatar. Why such a large number of people are forced to move to foreign countries risking their lives as they are engaged in dirty, dangerous and demeaning work!  What is even worse is the fact that some come home in coffins. When such a trend will come to an end. These are a trillion-dollar question that needs convincing explanations.

We experienced a decade-long armed conflict killing over 17000 Nepalese people. Many were maimed and forcefully abducted whose status is still unknown. Now, many people across the country are questioning the rationality of people’s war. I think we will get a convincing explanation very soon.

This is not an exaggeration to conclude that not all is well in politics even though we have what we call democracy. Frustration among the people is all-time high and there is widespread feeling among the general masses that partisan and personal interests have overtaken the genuine concerns and welfare of the people. As a matter of fact, the concerns and welfare of the people have been pushed to the backburner giving the impression that leaders are not accountable for inflation, poor governance, rising corruption and poor service delivery.

As things stand now, power, position, wealth, personal and partisan benefits seem to be the only objective of our present politicians. Consequently, the people have been losing faith in political parties and their leaders which was well reflected in the last general election. While people’s faith in political leaders was dwindling, some new forces claiming to be an alternative to the established and traditional parties assured us good days. But soon, we found that they were no exception.

We do not need tall and lofty promises. We just need good governance and access to effective service delivery. And this is not too much to ask for. People’s hopes are dwindling and if it deteriorates further, we may experience yet another revolution. But this time, it will overthrow these unaccountable and self-centered politicians. Time is running out and it is high time that leaders mend their ways and instill hope among the general masses.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.