Addressing a function organized by Human Rights and Peace Society to mark the fifth Republic Day in the capital on Monday, they also voiced concern over the deterioration of the social and communal harmony that has subsisted in Nepal for hundreds of years. [break]
Civil society leader and political analyst Shyam Shrestha said the country now has to face a political crisis as the same political leaders remained in power even after the change in political system that came about after Janaandolan II in April, 2006. He further said “Political parties that have raised issues of class are seen involved in the politics of ethnicity,”and accused party leaders of considering only the ´politics of votes´.
He alleged that political parties had distorted the real meaning of federalism, to suggest single-identity based provinces. “The issue of federalism has been grossly misinterpreted. This is going to invite very unfortunate consequences.”
Another civil society activist, Dr Sundar Mani Dixit, argued that top leaders of political parties were now discredited with their failure to bring a new constitution even after four years. Alleging that the party leaders were more concerned with power politics than with working on the new constitution, Dr Dixit said, “The leaders have already failed. We should not allow them back into politics again.”
He also expressed concern that some irresponsible remarks by political leaders threatened to destroy social and communal harmony in the country.
Addressing the function, Nepali Congress youth leader Gagan Thapa said the constitution drafting process hit a snag at some point due to the ambition of top leaders to make it to the post of prime minister. “In the hearts of top leaders, we could feel their hankering for the top post. This also hindered promulgation of the new constitution,” he said.
Thapa, who was also a CA member, apologized for failing to bring a new constitution as promised. “We saw different political equations in the past four years. These power equations show that they were not ideology-based,” he said, adding they were solely for the sake of power.
Civil society activist Krishna Pahadi argued that the CA was doomed as issues of ethnicity and regionalism prevailed during constitution drafting rather than other key issues of the new constitution. “The Constituent Assembly was dissolved as per the plan of the Maoist chairman to remain in power all the time,” he said.
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