KATHMANDU, MAY 14 National Assembly member Sunil Bahadur Thapa today launched a scathing attack on the government's proposed policies and programmes for fiscal year 2026/27, accusing the administration of being 'directionless, unrealistic and detached from the country's ground realities.' Addressing the National Assembly, Thapa said the government document lacked a clear vision to address Nepal's deepening economic and social challenges, including unemployment, declining purchasing power, youth migration, agricultural distress and weak public service delivery. 'The country is passing through an economic crisis. Industries are collapsing, markets have weakened, youths are compelled to leave the country, farmers are frustrated and traders are on the verge of displacement,' Thapa said. 'But listening to the government's policies and programmes gives the impression that the country has no problems at all.' The lawmaker criticised what he described as growing disregard for parliamentary values and democratic norms. Referring to the Prime Minister's absence during the President's address to Parliament, Thapa argued that such actions undermined the dignity of the state and parliamentary traditions. He also questioned the government's repeated commitments to economic reform, saying there was little clarity on implementation at a time when revenue targets were not being met, capital expenditure remained low and foreign debt continued to rise. On employment, Thapa accused the government of 'selling illusions' to young people by repeatedly promising jobs without creating an environment for investment, industrial growth or domestic production. 'The biggest proof of the government's failure is the continuous outflow of youths abroad,' he said, pointing to long queues of migrant workers at the airport. Thapa also expressed concern over Nepal's worsening agricultural dependency, noting that the country, once an exporter of rice, now imports billions of rupees worth of food grains annually. He criticised the government for failing to address chronic problems such as fertiliser shortages, lack of irrigation, rising production costs and market insecurity. He specifically highlighted the growing menace of monkeys destroying crops in rural areas, saying many farmers had been forced to abandon cultivable land and migrate elsewhere. Calling the government's federalism implementation 'centralised in mindset,' Thapa alleged that powers were increasingly being concentrated within the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers rather than devolved to provincial and local governments as envisioned by the Constitution. The National Assembly member further described the state of public education and healthcare as alarming, arguing that the policy document merely repeated old commitments without concrete reforms. On constitutional amendment, Thapa proposed forming an independent expert commission led by a former chief justice to recommend revisions after broad consultations with political parties, civil society, constitutional experts and the media. He also criticised the government for failing to prioritise reconstruction and preservation of historical heritage sites, including Singha Durbar and Sheetal Niwas, which suffered damage during past incidents. Nepal's rich cultural heritage and tourism potential, he said, had been largely ignored in the policy document. Raising concerns over governance and accountability, Thapa questioned why reports related to past commissions and investigations had not yet been made public. He also criticised the government's handling of inflation and fuel price hikes, saying ordinary citizens were burdened by rising living costs while the government lacked an effective price-control policy. Thapa noted that Nepal's planned graduation from the United Nations' least developed country category in November 2026 was a historic opportunity, but said the government had failed to present a clear strategy for the transition. He also warned about Nepal's vulnerability to international financial scrutiny, saying insufficient attention had been given to concerns surrounding the Financial Action Task Force grey list risks. On climate change, the lawmaker said Nepal remained highly vulnerable to glacial melting, forest fires, droughts, floods and landslides, yet the government's policy document lacked concrete climate strategies ahead of upcoming global climate negotiations. Thapa further criticised the increasing use of ordinances, warning that bypassing Parliament weakened democratic institutions and encouraged authoritarian tendencies. 'Democracy is not just rule by majority; it is also the protection of institutional independence,' he said, stressing the need to safeguard judicial independence from executive interference. Concluding his remarks, Thapa said the government's policies and programmes had failed to reflect public aspirations and warned that history would remember the administration as one that squandered opportunities unless it undertook serious self-review and policy restructuring.