United we stand

The address by Prime Minister Prachanda was really laudable and I think it should be welcomed by everyone. It is time for all Nepali citizens to realise their duty and obligations towards the country. A good strategy was outlined by PM Prachanda for the

elimination of social evils. However, such steps had been announced in the past but were never implemented. This time though, I am hopeful. Let us stop blaming the

government and instead unite and work together to build a new Nepal. After all, it is also our duty to contribute to the task of nation building.

Sameer Ali, via e-mail

No point

Several persons are reported to have been taken into police custody on suspicion of their being linked in some way to the murder of journalist Uma Singh, including her relatives. I don’t think there is any point in further investigation as even if the culprits are caught they are unlikely to be tried in the court of law but instead be set free. The suspects may even be

rewarded as has happened in some murder cases, including Koteshwor-based businessman Ramhari Shrestha. But if the current government can’t stop impunity then it should

either quit or scrap the laws that criminalise murder.

Rabin Gautam, via e-mail

Quotas

The Prime Minister in his address to the nation has stated that reservations for the Dalits would be made according to the proportional representation. I would, however, like to opine that such reservations would only continue the status quo of marginalisation of the Dalits for a long time. All the scholarships available to the state should be 100 % reserved for the Dalits for at least 10 years and this reservation should be extended till they (Dalits) are actually represented proportionately at all levels of governance.

V P Sayami, via e-mail

Corruption

Prime Minister Prachanda has said that a public servant who takes a bribe as well as a citizen who gives it (bribe) are both corrupt. This sounds like a repetition of King Prithvi Narayan Shah’s statement. Everyone seems to agree that bribe-taking public servants are corrupt. However, it is not right to charge all citizens that offer bribes to the public servants as corrupt. Often, it is the helplessness of the citizens that compels them to offer bribes. If the public servant does not do his duty faithfully, and if the chief of any government office only makes a mockery of his duty to the public, as well as of the suggestions put into the complaints box, citizens are forced to give bribes to get their urgent business

accomplished. How can such victims of corruption be called corrupt citizens?

Bibek Sharma, via e-mail

Shocking

Apropos of the news report “Virgin whisky, Khukuri rum sale stopped” (THT, Jan. 27), it is shocking to learn that even branded liquors sold in the market have turned out to be spurious. There is the possibility of somebody faking brands. The government has done the right thing by banning their sales and consumption. However, when will the

hundreds of taverns in the capital that serve poisonous hooch grab its attention?

Basanta Devkota,

Gaurighat,Kathmandu