What appears is like a tip of the iceberg with news of more cooperatives involved in such scams in an attempt to steal the money of the depositors
Like a gentle shower, a few cooperative scams had started making discordant and trickling noises a few years back. But now they have transformed into a heavy downpour with a roaring sound, especially after the alleged involvement of Deputy Prime Minister and the President of Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) Rabi Lamichhane in such scams. The parliament has been disrupted by the opposition party, the Nepali Congress (NC), since a long time now, seeking the establishment of an investigation committee to look into the scams underway in all the cooperatives in general and that of the Gorkha Media, focussing on the role of Lamicchane in particular. The government has agreed to form a committee but without implicating Lamichhane, which is akin to staging a show on the Mahabharat sans important actors like Duryodhan.
Lamicchane is alleged to have sought to silence the press as evidenced by the arrest of Kailash Sirohia, Chairman of Kantipur Media Group, from his office on the flimsy ground of an orchestrated complaint of owning a citizenship certificate which resembles that of the petitioner. Prime Minister Prachanda and his newly-found comrade-in-arms K P Oli, the former prime minister, who were at daggers drawn with each other till a few months back, have been booed for singing at best a childish duet by saying that Sirohia would be freed within three days by the court. That they have been wide off the mark has been proved by the extension of yet another three-day stint on the top of a similar two already ordered by the court in the past.
Kantipur media has been appreciated for taking the lead in institutionalising a free press and professional journalism in the country. It is no wonder then that it reports news related to irregularities in the Nepali society as part of its karma. Accordingly, it had been publishing news about the involvement of Lamicchane in the cooperative scam. The government has created such terror that the comedy kings Madan Krishna and Hari Bansa had to offer a public apology after they were volleyed with a barrage of criticism by a seemingly RSP-orchestrated social media for their support of Sirohia condemning his unlawful arrest.
The depositors who have lost their money have been protesting since a long time. The NC has also decided to demonstrate from the Parliament as well as the pavement, which has been supported by myriads of people in the streets. The NC leaders have been blamed by the UML for making derogatory remarks against former Prime Minister K P Oli, demanding a written apology by the UML. Very well known for making acerbic remarks himself, the former prime minister may have to offer hundreds of apologies before he expects one from the NC.
What appears is like a tip of the iceberg with news of more cooperatives involved in such scams in an attempt to steal the money of the depositors. Some have been on the run like G B Rai, who allegedly worked hand in glove to siphon money with the Deputy Prime Minister. The RSP president is said to have taken the illicit loan from the cooperative when he was the managing director of Galaxy Television owned by Gorkha Media Network. Others are behind bars like the founder of Civil Savings and Credit Cooperative.
Cooperatives can be described as being of the people, by the people and for the people where they deposit their savings, expecting increased return for use in times of urgency. Its history goes back to a long time in the past. Initially, they existed in the form of Dhukuti savings, Dharma Bhakari and Parma, which are the labour exchanging systems together with the Guthi, or trust, which has a more than a 1500- old Licchavi origin. They provide opportunities for their members to carry out income-generating activities by giving out loans which they return afterwards in due course of agreed time.
In the West also, it goes back to the time of Robert Owen, a socialist reformer as well as a pioneer of the cooperative movement. He started Fenwick Weaver Society in Scotland back in 1761 at about the time when Prithvi Narayan Shaha had decided to take over the Kathmandu Valley after being impressed by its majestic view from Chandragiri.
The Cooperative Act was first passed in 1960, which was then followed by the Agriculture Cooperative Act. The creation of the Cooperative Bank in 1963 and subsequent transformation to the Agriculture Development Bank are some of its milestones. The Nepal Federation of Savings and Credit Cooperative Unions came into the picture in 1988. The Cooperative Act and the regulations were also prepared a little later. Despite this, there are scams, which were reported by Kantipur media leading to the arrest of its chairman.
One does not have to labor hard to say that this is naked aggression on the freedom of the press. It has been proved by the concern of the American Embassy of Nepal, International Federation of Journalists, Reporters without borders, Society of Professional Journalists of America, Transparency International and the likes, but the government has turned a deaf ear to this living reality. Had it not been the case, such prestigious institutions would not have spent their valuable time on the Nepali media scene.
A similar assault was made on journalist Padam Thakurathi by the Panchayat system by resorting to a shooting spree early in the morning. Thakurathi survived the firing incident after being operated upon and consequently he was known as a journalist who takes a bullet for breakfast. It paved the way for the demise of the Panchayat system a few years after celebrating its silver jubilee. It may also trigger the disintegration of the present coalition if it continues to take such undemocratic measures in the future.
