LETTERS

Tip of the iceberg

This is in reference to the news report “CIAA raids ADBN” (THT, Aug 20). The anti-graft body’s investigation into ADBN’s recruitment process is a welcome move. The CIAA should likewise initiate investigation into other official decisions that involve wrong motives, for instance, into the construction of half-a-dozen unnecessary office buildings at the insistence of the then general manager of ADBN, Devendra Pratap Shah. The buildings were constructed overruling the written objections of the Nepal Rastra Bank and the bank’s employee unions.

Investigation into the objectives behind the construction is warranted by the fact that one of the office buildings at Thimi which cost over Rs 200 million has been lying completely unused for five years.

Ramesh Bahadur Shrestha, Lalitpur

Flawed

The US embassy in Kathmandu rejects visa applications without any valid reasons. I had applied for student visa to study Master’s degree in health care administration/ management under the Cooperation Curricular Practical Training (Coop CPT) programme at Stevens Henager College in Utah. I produced all the necessary documents but was denied visa on the grounds that I already had a Master’s degree from Nepal. I agree that most Nepalis who apply for a student visa intend to stay and work in the US. But come to think of it, absence of clearly defined criteria costs an average applicant dear. On rough estimates, Nepali students annually spend around Rs 76,800,000 ($1,113,043) in rejected visa fees. The embassy should

clearly outline visa requirements.

Rai Biren, Kathmandu

Equal share

CPN-UML leader Jhala Nath Khanal has frequently expressed his doubts over Maoist intent while proposing Prachanda for the post of Prime Minister. Now that his party has joined the

three-party coalition, UML is claiming a stake in the government at par with the Maoists. In that case, if the government fails to deliver on its promises, the major coalition parties will share equal blame.

V P Sayami, Kathmandu

Mistrust

Two decades after the restoration of multi-party democracy in Nepal, the cat and mouse game between the political leaders continues to dominate Nepali politics. Our politicians have failed to mature and work selflessly for the greater good of the people. The present coalition led by CPN-Maoist has not been able to settle differences over distribution of cabinet portfolios. On the other hand, the Maoists have shown their distrust of the national army by deploying PLA for the security of the Prime Minister. Now that Prachanda is the head of state, he should rise above party politics and show his loyalty to all Nepalis.

Maila Nepali, via e-mail

Get going

This is in reference to the news report “40,000 flee homes in Sunsari; 20 missing” (THT, Aug 20). It is sad that though thousands have been rendered homeless and property worth millions have been damaged by recent floods, the government is not doing enough to help the flood victims. It should do some work for a change.

Shiva Neupane, Melbourne