It’s been a week since CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal was elected as Nepal’s prime minister for a second time. The 61-year-old leader promised to lead the nation toward economic development and work as a bridge between communities following deadly protests over a divisive new constitution. But how many people believe his words? The Week asked some youngsters about their expectations from the new government.
Arya Kharel
Unstable politics jolts Nepal more than earthquake. This is a sentence that perfectly sums up the present condition of the country. The appointment of new prime minister is nothing to be happy about because fake promises are all that the former prime ministers have offered and to which history stands as testimony. Hence, the appointment can be taken as a good decision only if it breaks the trend of giving people false hopes and beliefs, leads the country to the path of development.
Due to the political bickering in the recent years, the mindset of the people has changed and the thing that the people want to see is that prime minister works for a positive change and not just for cheap popularity. Indulging in showoff leads to nothing more than a whole bunch of leaders fighting and polarizing the political spectrum of the country resulting in messy politics and unstable county. The government should work in collaboration with specialists/educators and give emphasis to entrepreneurship. As a student, these are some of the changes I would like to see in Nepal. Further, there is the reconstruction issue and government should prioritize the needs of the earthquake victims immediately.
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Gokul Sharma
I am a radical person. I believe there wasn’t any need of a new government at all. The new coalition is formed to fulfill the interests of Nepali Congress and the Maoist Center. There wasn’t a need for the change of government at all. Earthquakes and the Indian economic blockade lead to massive loss.
The new government should work to implement the new constitution as well as to provide relief to the earthquake victims. It seems that the government is more interested in distributing the budget to their political cadres. The hopes of the people are being smeared by the corrupt minds of the political leaders.
Someone who is visionary and has self-confidence should have been the prime minister rather than someone who lacks confidence. The education system in Nepal is facing great challenges. The Ministry of Education must try to appoint teachers not based on political interest but in accordance to their caliber. The government needs to bring reforms in the teaching methods, technology and come up with a new vision and policy for education.
Sachet Gurung
My colleague and I actually had a wager about how long Oli’s government would last. I wasn’t surprised that the government changed. Rumors were making rounds months ahead. Intentions of Deuba and Prachanda were pretty apparent soon after. I believe our northern and southern neighbors have had a lot of influence in this decision. I don’t believe that these government changes are solely based on our Nepali politicians’ independent agendas and personal ego clashes. In my opinion, there certainly are some external pressures in these matters.
I can’t see what the foreseeable future might bring. I don’t see any defined route that our country might take. Not so long ago, the immediate concern was the constitution. The plan was to have it written by any means. We may have achieved that feat but the rest is still in disarray. The Madhes issues look no way close to coming to an end. Further, their parties remain divided among themselves. The local elections are supposed to be held soon but I am not confident about how they will proceed. The way I see it, our political problems will sadly linger on and Nepalis will learn to adapt to them. I feel like the new generation should be given a chance to lead but will they be able to do a better job? There is no guarantee. At the moment, I don’t know what is that spark that might help usher in the change that we are looking for in our governance.
Nisha Kunwar
I actually watched KP Oli’s last speech as prime minister. It somewhat seemed like he was issuing an open challenge to the next government to do a better job. Now, if this stirred the Prachanda camp and they wish to show others that indeed they are better suited for the post, perhaps we can look forward to some development or progress. Otherwise, I don’t have much hope. I am not exactly a big fan of Prachanda. He hasn’t given us any reason to have faith in the Maoists. The way I see it, nobody is working for the country, the people or our future. They still aren’t bothered about long-term visions and plans. We are all well familiar with how the Nepali system works.
Nevertheless, if there are any intentions of taking steps toward development, I do have some areas of concerns. First of all, I wish the new government to finish the ring road expansion project as soon as possible. It has been going on for too long and is seriously hampering our quality of life. I happen to have asthma and it is making living in Kathmandu a nightmare. Similarly, this is the Maoists government and I hope that they plan to seriously look into the issues of the victims of the decade-long People’s War. The families of the disappeared or displaced need to be treated properly. Also, the idea of a federal state needs to be put in motion. The fact that we are so much Kathmandu centric is a major setback that needs to be tackled as soon as possible.
