Government's Noteworthy Initiatives

Prem N. Kakkar

PROBLEMS crop up time and again in national politics. Since the success of Jana Andolan II and the formation of the interim government and the legislature parliament with the participation of the Seven Party Alliance and the Maoists, the country can be definitely said to be moving towards the goal of holding the constituent assembly (CA) polls on November 22. There is, no doubt, that the announcement of the CA poll date is very significant as it has erased all doubts and confusions that persisted in the minds of the people stirred by the political leaders themselves in their various addresses. That the government was dilly dallying over the date for the polls has been proved wrong.Law and orderNow that all eyes are set on the CA polls, it is the right time for all the political parties to concentrate on the drive to go to the villages and districts so that the people will have all the inputs to be aware about the poll and prepare for it. So far, it seems that the political parties and their activists have not adequately galvanised themselves for the purpose. This is rather disconcerting as the polls going to be held in the country for the first time has great ramifications for the whole political scenario.

That the polls are important has been highlighted by the political leaders and the government, but concrete steps on many fronts have yet to be undertaken to the fullest. The first and foremost is improving the law and order situation of the country. Without peace prevailing, it is clear that it will be difficult to conduct the CA elections. The government is well aware of the situation, so it is conducting talks with the various agitating groups. The talks are moving ahead, but the conclusion is yet to come about. It can be hoped that soon an amicable solution with the different groups will materialise in the interest of all, including the voters. The violence that is taking place in many parts of the country, especially the eastern Terai region, is of great concern. There are people who are blaming the government for this, but it alone cannot do everything and needs the support of all, particularly the stakeholders. The differences in opinion among the political parties represented in the government are natural, but the need is to resolve them through mutual understanding and dialogue. That has been the hallmark of the time since Jana Andolan II achieved success. This is the reason why the top leaders of the eight parties always speak of maintaining unity despite the fact that the CA elections are going to be competitive.The reason for maintaining unity is the outcome of the fear that the regressive elements might become active to undermine the gains made so far. A look at the way the cabinet meetings are being held shows this. There are differences, and then the meetings are stalled for a number of days. Following high level parleys, the cabinet again sits down to take important decisions. The same happened last week. Finally, a cabinet meeting was held on Wednesday.

The meeting took some very important decisions, including the presentation of the Rayamajhi Commission report to the legislature parliament so as to make it public. The cabinet also approved the tune for the new national anthem. In fact, the country had been without a national anthem for over a year.In making the Rayamajhi Commission report public, the people will formally come to learn of the people indicted by the Commission. It will also make it easier for the legal process to start to prosecute those who have been named in the report for their suppressive role during the April revolution. Over 200 people have been named in the report, against whom legal action has to be taken. In this context, it is not understandable why the government took so long to take the decision to present the report to the legislature parliament. Now that the decision has been taken, the people will be waiting to see what steps will be taken to implement the recommendations of the Rayamajhi Commission. That it has come a few months before the CA polls must also be taken into consideration. DemandsThough late, steps are being taken to take the people into confidence. This will boost the morale of the people in the run up to the CA polls. Meanwhile, steps must be taken to deliberate on the demands of the various agitating groups, improving the law and order situation and the campaign to go to the villages and districts to make the people aware of the importance and necessity of the constituent assembly election. If these are done, the dream of a new Nepal will definitely materialise.

Source: The Rising Nepal, August 3, 2007