Submit your Article

Open borders with India represent a major challenge in stemming the spread of coronavirus. With cases in India peaking, entry points on Nepal-India border have been put on high alert. Birgunj, the busiest Nepal-India gateway, is often regarded as Nepal’s Covid-19 hotspot. This time too, the city has seen cases steadily rise. Pratik Ghimire of ApEx talked to Vijay Kumar Sarawagi, mayor of Birgunj Metropolitan City, to know about their preparations and plans to contain the spread.

How are your preparations for the third wave?

Having fought valiantly against the two previous waves, Birgunj is ready to deal with the new wave with the help of our added manpower and resources. We have focused on Narayani Hospital where we have installed an automatic oxygen plant with the capacity to fill over 200 oxygen cylinders a day and oxygen lines have been added to over 600 beds, to be fed directly from the plant. As unvaccinated children are vulnerable, we have established a special child ward with all instant facilities. 

Besides, we have added health desks at borders and increased the number of community contact tracing teams. Vaccination has also picked up in our metro.

What is the state of your isolation centers?

Our isolation centers have not been used as almost every covid infected individual is isolating in their homes. Moreover, it looks like this wave is less harmful as even those who are admitted to hospitals are being discharged within a week. We have also not allowed a single person to enter Nepal without a negative antigen test. Yet, for an emergency, we have built a 400-bed holding center, which can also be used for isolation.

Also read: Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya: Commission ready to hold local elections on April 27

There seems to be a lack of public awareness in the metropolitan city. How can you convince citizens to follow health protocols?

We admit that the virus has already spread in the community because almost 70 percent of those being tested are returning positive results. Many with mild symptoms are not even getting tested. They are rather self-isolating in their homes. We are encouraging them to test through various digital campaigns and are also planning to provide door-to-door PCR services. The District Administrative Office (DAO) has been monitoring compliance of protocols, and imposing a fine of Rs 100 on those violating the rules. We also provide masks to those who appear without them in public places.

Birgunj has vaccinated 57 percent of its eligible population, and many have even received doses from India. So, tentatively, over 80 percent of our citizens are vaccinated. As it is common to have a cold during the winter, people might ignore mild symptoms. Our metro has almost 30,000 children above 12 who are eligible for vaccines, and 20,000 of them have already been vaccinated. We are waiting for vaccines for minors under 12.

How much has the metro spent on covid crisis management?

We have allocated Rs 30 million for it but the fund has barely been spent as provincial and central governments have taken care of most expenses.

How has the coordination been with other governments and departments?

There is no problem between us and the DAO. But coordination among municipalities is lacking. For instance, as Birgunj is more developed compared to surrounding areas, people from neighboring municipalities come to Narayani Hospital, which is causing an overload. We have to manage logistics for that. With more support from provincial and federal governments as well as municipalities, we will surely be in a position to provide better services.

The Election Commission (EC) has expedited preparations for elections of local governments whose tenure expires on May 19. Along with the preparations, the commission is also busy exploring ways to reform the electoral process and formulating an integrated election law. In this connection, Pratik Ghimire of ApEx talked to Chief Election Commissioner Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya.

How are the preparations for local levels going?

On December 24, we met the prime minister and proposed April 27 as a date for local level polls. Even if the date is yet to be finalized, the commission is ready to conduct elections before the expiry of the terms of the 36,000 local representatives on May 19. As of now, we are busy updating voter lists and are in consultation with officials of the finance ministry, security departments, and other concerned bodies.

Are there plans to use the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in the upcoming elections?

The commission is ready to and in favor of using the EVM system, but it is not possible without political consensus. The EC has held talks with them several times but to no avail. Also, to use the EVMs, we have to have mass demo sessions, at least a year before the announcement of election dates. So there is no chance of using EVMs for local level elections, but we still can do it for elections of federal and provincial parliaments, but again, only if there is political consensus.

Also read: Krishna Pokharel: 2021 was a year of disillusionment in Nepali politics 

How will this election cycle differ from previous ones?

The election process and voting system have not changed from the previous time, but we are planning to use new technology for surveillance so that elections are more free, fair and peaceful. But primarily, the commission is focusing on civic education, which includes educating the public on the importance of their votes, election-time etiquettes, etc.

What is the progress on a single ‘integrated law’ for all levels of elections?

A few days earlier, the government agreed on the principle of an ‘integrated law’. We will now create a taskforce to prepare related Acts. In two months, we will present the integrated law to the government, which in turn will present it in parliament.

How is the commission planning to curtail excess campaign spending this time?

This time, we are working on an Act that will make it mandatory for candidates to disclose their property details so that the EC can monitor the excesses in their election promotional campaigns. We have also decentralized powers and authorized local election committees to check for adherence to election code of conduct. We appeal to everyone to report any misconduct as only with collective effort can we hold free and fair polls.

From the dissolution of the federal parliament to its reinstatement by the judiciary, 2021 witnessed many events of historical political importance. ApEx’s Pratik Ghimire talked to Krishna Pokharel, a political science professor at Tribhuvan University, to make some sense of the developments.

How do you recall 2021 in terms of political developments?

The year was hectic, in the sense that there were plenty of political developments, both at federal and provincial levels, in what was a relatively short time. After a long time, people were expecting a stable government that would deliver much-needed development works. But things went the opposite way and for most folks the past year turned out to be a year of disillusionment. As we have a mixed electoral system, there is no alternative to coalition governments and so the parties, in the coming year, should look to build more mutual trust.

What in your view were the top three political events of 2021?

There were many. But if I have to choose the top three, the first would be the unconstitutional dissolution of the House, followed by its reinstatement. Second, even after the restoration, the same party that dissolved the house didn’t let it run so that it could dub its previous step “progressive”. Lastly, the formation of a coalition government of the leftist and democratic forces was another significant development. 

Also read: Krishna Khanal: Too early to speculate about future Nepali Congress presidency 

Do you think our constitutional bodies functioned well in 2021?

Except for the Public Service Commission and the Office of the Auditor General, no other constitutional body worked well. They rather acted like puppets of the government, not as neutral arbiters and advisors. For instance, the Election Commission gave a timely verdict concerning a vertical split in the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal but delayed a similar verdict in the case of the NCP, acting as a pawn of the person in power. And now when Sher Bahadur Deuba is in power, it has started favoring him.

How would you review the judiciary’s functioning?

Turmoil in the judiciary showed that when the right people are not in the right place, the organization in question can never deliver. The same judiciary functioned well when Ram Prasad Shrestha was the chief justice. But things are different now due to its new “vulgar leadership.” The judiciary’s head demanding his share in appointments of constitutional bodies, cabinet, and envoys is not something the public expects, thus eroding their faith in the justice system.

What did you take away from the four recent general conventions of major political forces?

Starting with CPN-UML, even if the inauguration was grand, the ending was not-so-impressive as the convention elected a list of party office-bearers handpicked by KP Oli. From the fifth general convention, the party had adopted a democratic practice of electing party officials through election, but Oli destroyed that practice in the eighth GC.

For me, the GC of RPP was just a media hype because even if the party technically has new leadership, there are only two members (one general secretary and the chairman himself) as office-bearers from the Rajendra Lingden team—that’s not an overhaul. The result is a clear tussle between the former king and Kamal Thapa.

Nepali Congress, of course, is a party with a long democratic history. A part of party leadership has continued, but another part has changed. Even if Sher Bahadur Deuba has a majority in the party, there are new and young faces even in his faction. So the general convention of the Nepali Congress is a combo of continuity and change.

The Maoists have come from a different background and, in the party, relations between leaders and cadres are like ones between commanders and commandos. But this party is now gradually adopting democratic ways. They have elected their provincial heads through elections. And we have to see how the public will take self-criticism of Pushpa Kamal Dahal expressed in his political document as that will determine the fate of the CPN (Maoist Center). 

The recently-concluded 14th general convention of the Nepali Congress has generated a lot of speculations, particularly concerning the much-desired generational change at the top and the party’s future electoral prospects.  

Pratik Ghimire of ApEx talked to Krishna Khanal, political analyst and professor of political science at Tribhuvan University, about the party’s present and future.

How would you evaluate the recent Nepali Congress general convention?

As the party’s membership distribution process is controlled by main leaders, I had thought the final results would reflect a compromise among various factions. But the distribution of votes says the opposite. We can see a strong urge for change. To an extent, this has started a good trend. The election of leaders like Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma shows what the cadres want.

Only two of the new 13-member office-bearers are old faces. What is the significance of this result?

Your statement is not true. Even as 11 new faces have been elected office-bearers, many of them like Bhishma Raj Aangdambe, Purna Bahadur Khadka and Farmullah Mansur have been near party leadership since the 90s. They are neither new nor represent anything new in the party. So I don’t consider this an indicator of progress.

Also read: Why are Nepali Congress leaders afraid of technology? 

Can Sher Bahadur Deuba run the party as per his wishes this time as well?

I guess yes because the president is the executive with all the powers. There will be more dissent than before for sure, but Deuba will be the man to take the final call on important issues. A few voices of dissent will not stop him from doing what he wants. So it’s better to not expect much.

Is it fair to say that Gagan Thapa or Bishwa Prakash Sharma stand a chance to win party presidency come the next general convention?

It would be too early to say that. But it is true that if they can maintain support from voters in the long run, this convention has created a firm foundation for them. Moreover, four years is a long time in politics. How the party performs in the upcoming elections and how the public sees this particular crop of leaders will determine a lot of things.

What in your view were the salient differences between the general conventions of the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML?

Nepali Congress is an old democratically-run party. So no other party has democratic values comparable to it. The convention was open and tough for candidates, whereas the UML had narrowed down the path to electoral victory by seeking consensus candidates. So these two general conventions can’t be compared. 

The other difference is that NC has an inclusive design for office bearers despite its factionalism. The UML was a one-man show. Similarly, NC cadres know who can lead the party in the future but in the UML, it’s just a matter of who KP chooses.