Rebuilding Nepal’s Politics For Accountable Governance

The ability of people to elect wise leaders capable of representation and performance in the delivery of public goods is the hallmark of representative democracy. But participatory democracies driven by the information revolution demand more—direct communication with leaders, recognition of their dignity and emotional satisfaction from political engagements. Nepali leaders, however, seem febrile.

They have failed to transform their political parties from tools of agitation to completely electoral machines capable of socialization, articulation of public interests, communication and social transformation. They seem weak in synchronizing with public admin in crafting public policies and animating the hope of people. As a result, governance in Nepal is sub-optimal.

It seems far less efficient to solve a range of problems. Lord Krishna reveals in the Mahabharata a harsh reality of politics: a nation having too many politicians ensures no peace. Nepali political parties’ intelligence lies in keeping political sight going non-stop without being answerable to the peeved cadres and people.