Political manoeuvring

Many leaders of the SPA-Maoist alliance are resorting to anti-king statements in order to divert the people’s attention away from the daily chaos and bad governance that has plagued the country. Prime Minister Koirala’s latest tirade against the King is also a part of this.

There are many problems facing the country at present. The Tarai is burning due to the Madhesi-led agitations; people are facing hours and hours of daily power cuts in the capital, not to talk of the villages; 12 embassies and missions of Nepal are still without the chief diplomats; fuel and vegetables are in short supply, and so on. I cannot bring to my mind a single credible achievement of this government. So, in order to hide its incapability, it relies on issuing anti-monarchy statements. This must stop immediately.

Preeti Koirala, USA

Unreliable

The Maoists’ demand for the home, defence and information portfolios must be summarily rejected. Giving them control of the police, army and media is akin to seizure of the

government through a coup. It seems that the Maoists are demanding the important portfolios since they are not confident of their victory in the CA polls. The continuing murder, intimidation, theft, extortion and other terror tactics have still not been dropped. If they really want to contribute to nation- building, why don’t they take up the portfolios of local development, health or education? Moreover, mismanagement of their camps and lack of

transparency of the state fund provided to their militia also make them untrustworthy.

Ashok Paneru, via e-mail

Power-cut

The cricket lovers are excited about the World Cup (starting March 13). But it seems that all the excitement may go down the drain if there is going to be load shedding in the evenings. As it is, there is no proper timing for the power cut these days. In some places the light goes off from 9:30 pm, and at 5 pm in other places. As many of the matches are scheduled to start at 8:15 pm, we will certainly miss most of the action. It would be better if the Nepal Electricity Authority revised the schedule for the benefit of the cricket fans.

Rambhu Acharya, Old Baneshwore

Corruption

Nepal has always been ruled by corrupt politicians who have misappropriated the state resources for their personal gains. Unfortunately, there is no change in the modus operandi of the present government as well. The culture of corruption, greed and self-advancement is so entrenched in the Nepali psyche that a government ‘of the people, by the people and for the people’ appears like a distant dream. The recent spate of strikes by small groups demanding their rights, while ignoring the rights of others, is ample proof that Nepali people do not want Nepal as a nation to prosper.

‘The greatest good for the greatest number’ in the long-run is a cornerstone of any democracy, republic or any other form of benevolent government. But nobody understands this and the whole game is driven by hunger for power, status and money. The leaders, especially PM Koirala and Chairman Prachanda, must demonstrate statesmanship at this point in time.

Don Michaels, Thamel