KATHMANDU, Jan 2: Former UML Vice Chairman Bhim Rawal, who was expelled for allegedly acting against the party's interests, has announced plans to establish a "patriotic alternative political force."
Rawal, currently preparing to form a party with a "liberal ideology" that incorporates both communist and those carrying liberal democratic values, declared on Wednesday his intention to create a political organization committed to national independence, self-respect and prosperity.
While announcing his plan to launch the ‘motherland awakening campaign’ to unite patriotic and honest forces, individuals, and communities to protect the rights and interests of the nation and its people, he said that the campaign will lay the foundation for building a patriotic organization for the future.
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“It is about moving ahead in consultation with people," he said. "It has become inevitable to form a patriotic alternative political force by deciding on policies, programs and actions that prioritize the country's interests. Campaigns will be conducted both within and outside the country to achieve this goal," he said.
Rawal argued that the campaign centered on national interests prioritizes the mobilization and utilization of the country's human and natural resources to serve the prime interests of the nation. "Politics, political parties and principles are merely tools to achieve those interests of the country. The country should remain above everything else. All components and mechanisms of political parties and the state should focus on the national interest, prosperity and the welfare of the people."
Rawal also pledged to pursue the path of rule, procedure, system and good governance selflessly. While accusing major political parties of prioritizing positions and power over the national interest, he said that politics, which should serve the supreme interests of the country and its people, has been reduced to the division of government positions and a tool for vested interests.
"The expectations of the people after political changes have been undermined by principles and policies being disregarded. The KP Oli faction has made the CPN-UML directionless and driven national politics onto a path devoid of principles or goals," he further said.
Rawal emphasized the need for free public opinion and a government guided by patriotic values and consciousness. "If the country is strong, the people will be strong. If the people are prosperous, the country will be prosperous," he said. "For this, a nationwide campaign against corruption, bad governance and arbitrary activities must be launched."
