Undoubtedly, the changes brought about by the historic Jana Andolan II were monumental in scope and intensity. With the signing of the historic peace agreement, the country witnessed an end to the decade long insurgency. Elections for the Constituent Assembly were held peacefully and the Maoist party emerged as the largest party in the election. A new government under the leadership of its most charismatic chairman was put in place, giving people the hope that the dream of an inclusive Nepal would now materialize.
Sadly, we did not get to see much of the magic of the Maoist chairman. The peace process and drafting of the new constitution did not progress the way they were expected to. Pushpa Kamal Dahal seemingly enjoyed wallowing in petty bureaucratic issues more than remaining engaged in institutionalizing the gains of Jana Andolan II. Much to everyone’s disappointment, he walked out of the government throwing the country into complete disarray.
Two successive coalition governments led by CPN-UML then came to power. The two UML prime ministers came and went without making any significant contribution, other than being able to hang their portraits on the wall of the prime minister’s office in Singh Durbar.
BHATTARAI’S GOVERNMENT
When BRB was anointed the next prime minister, his popularity was soaring. He became the head of the government at a time when the spirit of consensus, unity and cooperation forged and followed after the 12-Point peace agreement was replaced by increased mistrust, misunderstanding and misperceptions among major political parties. The contour of new Nepal, consistent with the visions and aspirations of the people, had thus become the worst victim. The peace process and constitution drafting had remained where they were. The CA’s life span as determined by the Supreme Court was fast coming to an end.
The prime minister had a mountain to climb. Rebuilding the much depleted trust, restoring the fractured confidence and replacing the bitterness with amity were some of the big challenges before him. Certainly, the challenges he faced were formidable. But people also believed he represented the last hope for lasting peace in Nepal.
The initial signs were optimistic. The integration of Maoist combatants, one of the integral part of the peace process, moved a notch ahead. Many contentious issues surrounding the constitution writing were also resolved. But then came the dreadful deadlock—the restructuring of the country along a federal set-up. This issue surprisingly took an ugly turn when some ethnic leaders raised the demand of mono-ethnic federal provinces. Suddenly, dangerous cleavages along ethnic lines appeared in the social harmony and cohesion that had gelled Nepali societies together for centuries. Consequently, the Constituent Assembly expired without delivering a constitution. Truth must be told, at such a trying time, the prime minister failed to give a measure leadership in consonance with popular expectations.
LIST OF FAILURES
Poor development delivery, corruption in bureaucracy, inability to stem rising unemployment, soaring food prices as a result of government’s failure to monitor markets, widespread scarcity of fertilizers, as well as growing instances of impunity continued to make a mockery of his promise of good governance. Mere promises are not enough; on the ground, the government didn’t take any action to make a difference in people’s lives.
The initiation of the peace process and the achievements made so far were the result of our home-grown efforts. There is no denying that international support, cooperation and an understanding to bring this about was equally crucial. But the inability of the CA to deliver a new constitution portrayed the Bhattarai government in bad light internationally also. Similarly, news of constant foreign interference continued to be reported in the media, which were never countered.
The period also saw some donor agencies coming up with highly provocative reports in the name of ethnic empowerment, trying to create further division among social groups and ethnic communities. But the government also failed to seek clarification from the concerned development agencies and put these agencies to task, as appropriate.
The international community today seems to be getting increasingly frustrated over the protracted delay in finding a solution to the current impasse. They feel the PM needs to be more proactive in paving the way for the formation of a national unity government, without further ado.
Yet another colossal failure of Bhattarai is his inability to conduct balanced neighborhood relations. The northern neighbor is reportedly looking somewhat askance at the clamor for many ethnic federal provinces in the hills; the southern neighbor, in the meantime, is seemingly impatient to see a few but strong regional provinces in the Tarai to neutralize the possible influences from the north and the center. The government has failed, meanwhile, to articulate its foreign policy priorities to manage the neighborhood relations effectively.
CONCLUSION
The greatness of a leader is tested only in times of crisis. Bhattarai’s ascension to the exalted post was an opportunity for testing his tact, talent, tenacity and political acumen. A seasoned traveler in the rough, unpredictable and often bumpy political roads of Nepal, and having had the benefit of being part of the peace process right from the beginning, it was believed he was fully aware of the sensitivities and intricacies involved in it. Thus, he could help the ship safely navigate out of the rough waters. He, however, failed to show the kind of statesmanship to help defuse the stalemate.
Till date, Bhattarai has been inefficient and hence unable to translate his commitments into concrete actions. As a captain, he has proven himself utterly incapable of navigating the chosen mission. Rather, he deserted the ship midstream and swam to safety only with his coalition partners, leaving the rest in the lurch. Simply put, his just-completed one year tenure has proved amply that he could neither apply his tact nor his talent, nor was he tenacious enough to reach out to other political parties as an effective peace-broker. He was just a poor captain, albeit not a bad one entirely.
The author is former chief of protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
bhimsen29@gmail.com
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