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Yet, unlike the opponents of Cortez and Rahman, our elected officials should not be worried about the elections anytime soon. There is still a chance to rectify their images as harbingers of "change" as they predicted
Jul 22, 2018 – The tectonic plates of world politics are slipping faster than ever. In recent weeks, the world has felt two noticeable tremors. The first quake comes from the world's financial capital, New York. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 28, beat a leader who had been in power for longer than she had been born. The other tremor comes from thousands of kilometers from the United States and close enough to Nepal, that is to say in Malaysia. Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman, 25, was elected Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports in the Malaysian government, making him the youngest minister in the country's history. In both cases, voters elected new players in political arenas in the hope of injecting innovation, integrity and vitality into the political system.
"Exceptional" perhaps sums up the mood, as very few of them expected that they would shake up electoral politics, where the money, the connections and the media decide the victory more than the strength of the programs and the integrity of the leaders. Voters are realizing that the potential to deliver the material is more than having a lock of gray hair. They no longer confuse the years of life on the planet as a measure of the ability to make effective decisions that shape the lives of millions of people.
In the 2017 elections, the CPN-Maoist and the CPN-UML promised to merge the two parties for a "change". Their mantras of "prosperity" resounded in stadiums, fields, lobbies and tents across the country. Nepali Congress, too, came with similar slogans. The Nepalese thought that maybe this time the politicians would finally change their old ways and deliver. Yet politicians have again been amnesic about their pre-election promises. Nepal remains a state run by a network of capitalist copyists, where commercial interests triumph over public welfare. Roads laden with puddles, collapsing bridges and dilapidated hospitals provide a more concrete testament than all the words in this article.
The way in which politicians treat the medical education bill is an example of how most of our elected officials are either unable or more unfortunately reluctant to change their behavior despite their pompous rhetoric of "change". The Nepalese Communist Party (NCP) interpreted two-thirds in parliament as an authorization to act authoritatively. They argue that only members of Parliament could have their say on the medical education bill because they are the "representatives" of people. Yet, they forget that people voted them to act in the public interest, not to bring crony capitalism to new heights.
Similarly, the opposition seized this as an opportunity to put the government on its knees by obstructing parliament, a tactic that oppositions in Nepal have mastered, whether they are the "communists" or the "democrats". The same leaders of the Nepali Congress (NC), when they were in government, have repeatedly held themselves in the implementation of the recommendations of the Mathema Commission. They should take as much responsibility as the NCP if not more for Dr. KC's 15th hunger strike. Unsurprisingly, they blame the government alone, conveniently forgetting their own antecedents, for the current temerity of the state against reforms in the health sector.
For the common good
Now is the time for our politicians to step back and reflect on the long-term political legacies they want to inherit. The current wave of politics around the world should be a warning sign for them that if they are unable to keep their promises of "prosperity" and "change," the defeat would be a lot humiliating. Yes, it could take a few more cycles of elections, but when consciousness begins to siphon into the nooks and crannies of Karnali, change becomes a matter of time rather than if. We should not go so far in our own history as 2052 B.S., when the Maoists of that time waged a war against the state of the very hills of Karnali.
From Jackson Heights in New York to Petaling Jaya in Kuala Lumpur to Sadak Military in Jumla, Nepalis
are the direct witnesses of the change in the world political landscape. They saw that it is possible for the
Cortez and Rahmans of the world come to power. They realize that options are open in Nepal if
the current political actors become complacent to keep their promises. In fact, they saw a wave of promising new political actors in recent federal and local elections. These candidates may have lost the competition, but the aspirations for change that they represent will only increase with time.
Yet, unlike the opponents of Cortez and Rahman, our elected politicians should not be worried about the elections anytime soon. There is still a chance to rectify their images as harbingers of "change" as they promised to be. The government should implement the recommendations of the Mathema Commission. This would mean responding to Dr. Govinda KC's requests without delay. The opposition should demonstrate that it is able to innovate while protesting and making its demands heard. Our politicians should be the "change" that they proclaimed to bring. They should learn to be humble with authority and daring without power. They should have the wisdom to step back so the nation can take a step forward.
As for politicians, now is the time to keep the promises. The world is watching. The fault lines are moving just below their feet in Baluwatar and Baneshwor and in the hills of Karnali. The time runs out in seconds and minutes. Act while you can for once the quaking starts, it might have already been a little too late.
Karki trained in public policy, economics, and politics at Princeton University (United States) and Peking University (China)
Published: 22-07-2018 08:26
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