In view of the demography and the challenges facing the country, new leadership with vitality and vision is the demand of the time and passion of the people.
“Leaders lead but in the end it’s the people who deliver,” former British prime minister Tony Blair said after being elected to parliament. The saying came true in the context of Nepal. The recently-concluded election has clearly implied that the voters want to change the course of the country with new leadership in every political party. The significant victory of the recently-formed Rastriya Swatantra Party with its bell election symbol is a warning bell to all established political parties. It must be acknowledged that this party has won seats in areas like Kathmandu and Chitwan where people are highly educated and politically very aware. The party has also made significant achievements across the country, especially in the urban areas where the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center) had strongholds in the past. Most importantly, the party has new faces, a younger generation and well-educated elected representatives compared to other parties.
Change is the very nature of politics and change is the only means of progression. People, especially in the educated urban areas, have chosen mostly new faces or candidates with new ideas and visions, defeating renowned political figures who were even able to mobilize money and muscle. This is a very encouraging indication of Nepal’s politics. According to the 2021 census, 61 percent of the population is between the ages of 15 and 64 and only 4.4 percent of the population is estimated to be more than 65 years old, and the remaining 34.6 percent of the population is younger than 14 years. History reminds us that the young and educated middle-class people from the urban areas are completely capable of making remarkable revolution for real change. In view of the demography and the challenges facing the country, new leadership with vitality and vision is the demand of the time and passion of the people.
Change of Guard and OBOR
Another important and positive message of the recent election is the comeback of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), which wants to reinstate the monarchy and the Hindu nation, as a national political party. RPP represents our national values and ideals. National identity is not only the land and people but its traditional values, beliefs, religions, culture and language. Nepal was known as the country of the only Hindu Kingdom in the world until it was declared a secular state. Being the only Hindu country in the world would be extremely beneficial for Nepal, like Israel, which has become the epicenter of the Jews all over the world.
Nepal’s Sanatan Hindu culture is the melting point of all national religions and culture, including Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, Hinduism, Kirant and the tradition and culture of all ethnic communities. There was no special treatment to a particular religion or tradition like in the western democratic countries in Nepal when it was a Hindu nation. The United Kingdom, known as the mother of democracy, reserves 26 seats in parliament for church members and 32 nations of Europe recognize Christianity as a state religion or official status. In Greece, members of parliament take an oath in the presence of the Archbishop of Athens. European leaders and the US President take an oath in the bible, there are Christian political parties with a Christian flavor and many European countries have areas where separation of Church and state does not apply. This was neither the case in Nepal when it was a Hindu nation, nor the RPP demands special status for a particular religious group. However, RPP wants to safeguard and preserve the national values and identity which must be respected.
Moreover, in Terai, the Janamat Party has come into national politics. This is also a noteworthy achievement. There have been polluted politics of power being played in the name of people in Terai-Madhes for the last few years. Politics was only for the leaders and their near and dear ones. However, with the election of a new party and new people, there is new optimism.
Most importantly, people have voted out some political leaders who had been holding onto power for so many years without delivering on their promises. Some of those defeated leaders had been dancing to a tune fitting to their opportunistic attitude. People across the country made their decision appropriately, giving a clear message to the political parties that there is no future without change in the course of politics. There is no future for the old established parties or leaders if they do not listen to the voices of the people.
In conclusion, there can be no change without new faces, new ideas and new visions. The newly-elected youth leaders of both traditional and new parties have been saying that there is a need for change to face the challenges in the country. The new government needs to bring out new policies to provide employment to thousands of youths who are sweating in the gulf, improve the economy, make our barren fields green, control corruption, preserve unity in diversity of the glorious religious, cultural and traditional values of different ethnic communities existing since time immemorial and provide free and fair good governance.
Nothing can be expected from the same faces who have not shown any sign of change from the past to the present. And there is no hope in the future without new faces. This is the time to select a great leader like the saying in the Bhagavad Gita and present an example to the nation- if not to the world. "Whatever action is performed by a leader, common men follow in his footsteps, and whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues."
