As an eight year old, the three most prominent wishes on my wish-list were: a) Driving a car. b) Wearing spectacles and c) Becoming the Prime Minister of Nepal! A decade down the lane, and I can (proudly) say that I’ve fulfilled my first two wishes. As of the third, it does seem a little over-ambitious. But, again, isn’t sky the limit? So, just a few more of such decades and I might as well end up the Premier of the New (old, by then?) Nepal.

Frankly, I can’t recollect what made me have this wish, instead, maybe, of Super-Man, or a Power-puff girl. Coming to think of it now, it was probably because I am, by nature, the kind of person who loves being on top of things. And becoming the PM must have, then, meant being the most important citizen of the country, the leader of the country.

But, with the change of circumstances, in the present context, my wish has every right to be amended too. Which means — I run for President now!

Of course, the maximum a commoner could aim for then was the post of Prime Minister. Presidency was out of question. I’m sure many of us had not even imagined Nepal as a

republic until recently.

But, as unpredictable as it is, Nepal has become a bundle of surprises in the recent years. And the latest surprise — the onset of republic in the country, has been for the greatest good.

Republic might mean different things to different people. To me, it simply means that in a republic, you can also get the nation’s top post, not because of which family you were born into, but because of what you make out of yourself in the course of your life.

This, I believe, is where equality begins. And this, of course, has been well exemplified by the fall of monarchy, under which birth made you a commoner or a king. And the President is the result of what you achieve through your capabilities and hard work.

This makes me long for the post of President. Ability and hard work are necessary, but everybody can’t become President in their lifetime. At a time, only one can get it. Therefore, becoming a President is also largely a matter of luck. Whether Lady Luck will smile on you only Lady Luck knows. But you can try.