It’s already more than a month since the election results of federal parliament and provincial assemblies were announced. The election gave a new mandate to the Left Alliance which won a clear majority to form the next government and they also have majority of seats in six of the seven provinces to form the provincial governments. But since the Election Commission is yet to formally announce the results of proportional representation (PR) of the federal parliament, no progress has been made in government formation process.
This is a slap in the face of millions who voted for change and who want to see the new government in place at the earliest. In the mean time, we are witnessing active campaigning by major national leaders to secure major jobs, from presidency to governorships in provinces. Chief Election Commissioner Ayodhee Prasad Yadav is rumored to be actively lobbying for vice president in the new government. Similarly, sitting president and vice president have also expressed strong desire to continue for another term.
Such efforts have left out the most important task of major leaders today: to figure out a way to form the new government. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has said he is eagerly waiting to hand over the power to the new government.
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However, his actions speak otherwise. Deuba government is actively making appointments in important positions and making decisions of far reaching consequences. These actions do not befit a care taker government which needs to have its bags packed to get out of the door soon.
Elections of the federal parliament and provincial assemblies formally ended the decade-long transition process that started with the end of civil war in 2006. People expect peaceful and stable politics for the years to come. With the new government, we can finally turn the page to development, prosperity and overall wellbeing of the people who have endured so much in the last few decades. In the absence of earnest efforts from major political players in peaceful transfer of power, there will likely be widespread hopelessness in the country.
The onus is upon the leaders to figure out the details so that the country will get a new government and we can then start talking about the direction of the country. Meanwhile, the current caretaker government must do away with appointments and decisions that will have lasting impact in various areas of our system.
Leaders will be better off facilitating ways to smooth transfer of power than thinking of their own political safety net. Delays in government formation will not only put off vital governance and development agenda but also erode people’s faith in the system. We should not create the situation where the people who voted for stability and development will start to look into the whole process with frustration.
A lot needs to be done to steer the country towards fully functioning federal democratic republic. The process will formally begin with new government formation. All hitches need to be cleared.
