Nepal is staring at a political and humanitarian emergency in these uncertain and testing times
As the cases of COVID-19 infection rise steadily in Nepal, the country is engulfed by a looming political storm. The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), headed by former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, has withdrawn support to the KP Sharma Oli-led Government. Now, Oli will have to face the trust vote on May 10 which, under the current circumstances, he might not survive. However, Oli has been quick to offer the olive branch and a few deals to the Opposition Nepal Congress. Noteworthily, Oli had played a masterstroke in the 2017-18 elections by merging his party (the CPN-UML) with the archrival CPN (Maoist). This had not only weakened a strong Opposition but also ended the premiership tussle between Oli and Prachanda. However, differences between these two competitive and power-hungry leaders were out in the open within months of the Government’s formation. This tussle finally ended in March this year with the Supreme Court declaring the “merger” illegal and restoring the individual status of the two parties.
Considering Oli fails the floor test on May 10, his two year-plus administration will be remembered for his assertion, authoritarianism, hunger for power, blatant lies, misgovernance, foreign policy failures and, above all, corruption. Oli centred his ultra-nationalistic outlook around an anti-India campaign. His country’s geographical constraints notwithstanding, he chose to badmouth India’s goodwill for political gains and compromised Nepal’s integrity by signing the Treaty of Mutual Legal Assistance with China and allowing its embassy to micromanage local affairs. Besides, corruption charges in the procurement of medical supplies to fight COVID-19 had led to the Army’s intervention last year. But the Oli Government is still crying foul against a private drug agency in Nepal that was assigned to procure vaccines from the Serum Institute of India. While the firm is accused of making profits out of human agony, the Oli Government did not bother to audit the agency which is found to have close ties with several Ministers. With the chances of a fresh election brightening, Nepal stands close to a major political and humanitarian crisis. The pandemic has reached the Everest base camp and the people can’t find medical help. The health infrastructure, already in a shambles after the 2015 earthquake, is overburdened. It’s time for the Nepalese people to rethink democracy in the existing form and start questioning politicians.
