![PM Oli, people are dying, end crisis now! [Commentary]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tAiKQvu-TZetjsDqlsU3OnNEZ-o9pDCKwoZXxyQTPHZaZR_Kak3mY3zPk0ZYILqpvRmHNOQoVJ73A4F5Btxwj6ceFHrQP6CDvZwOVyCVq6ie9ei6Mg33c8pYDcRdRZzzPWK_V2y1z7r_pAOS3McO_XtfyWQVxdOCRx=s0-d)
KATHMANDU, Nov 16: It has been more than a month since Prime Minister KP Oli took the oath of office. He came to power under extraordinary circumstances. People across Nepal are facing acute fuel shortages, hospitals are running out of essential drugs and oxygen; schools have been shut for months in the southern plains, which is directly impacting the future of 1.5 million children.
More than ten districts in the Tarai-Madhes have been virtually shut down for over three months now. Our economy is becoming crippled and sliding toward depression.
And you would imagine the government would be serious about resolving the crisis and easing the lives of ordinary citizens. You would think that PM Oli would use every means available to the state and all its resources to conduct marathon talks with the protestors, and also ensure the smooth supply of essential goods. However, the pace at which the Oli government is functioning makes one wonder about its very viability.
We don’t have to go too far to see how things need not be this way. Soon after the Paris carnage last Friday, French President Francois Hollande declared a state of emergency, closed the borders of the country and mobilized all state security agencies to hunt down the terrorists. He addressed the nation within hours after the massacre, and vowed to his people to wage a “merciless” fight against the Islamic State. As I write this today, the French government has already started bombing places in Syria that are under the control of the Islamic State. Yet, despite the swiftness of President Hollande’s responses, the French people are already questioning the readiness of the state’sintelligence and security agencies for detecting and foiling terrorist attacks.
But let’s get back to the state of affairs in our own country. PM Oli’s address to the nation came after a month since his assumption of office. The speech lacked any sense of urgency for resolving the crisis. In his address, PM Oli did acknowledge the gravity of the situation, but failed to provide any practical solutions. Our people are not interested in lofty long-term plans such as the metro rail in Kathmandu, which we have heard about only too often. Rather, people want to know when schools will reopen so that they can send their children back to class. People want to know when fuel supplies will normalize so that they can go to work without having to worry about cooking gas. People in the Tarai-Madhes want to know if the Oli government cares about their sufferings due to protests over the last three months.
Yes, we can blame India and others for our misery. In fact, India has always been the easiest scapegoat for almost all our problems. But we have to acknowledge that we face a problem and we need to sort it out. Our own people in the Tarai-Madhesh are protesting and it is incumbent upon us to hear them out and address their concerns. Talks between the government and the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) have so far failed to produce any meaningful resolution for the ongoing crisis. People have not yet come out onto the streets of Kathmandu to protest against the government and they are willing to put up with the pain. But their patience is running thin.
The UDMF has returned to parliament. This is a welcome move. The talks have to intensify. The protestors are seeking solutions within the framework of the new constitution. They want expanded territory in two of the southern provinces, and this is in fact a positive step. It will only help in the integration of our society, culture and peoples. Leaders in Kathmandu, including PM Oli, have to get over their fears of disintegration of our nation-state.
Our public revenue is dwindling. Economists are predicting a scary economic outlook for the current and next fiscal year. Black marketeering is at an all time high. At such a time, PM Oli’s proteges are off to make millions through misuse of state resources. Gopal Khadka, the managing director of Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), admitted flouting the law, at a hearing last week of Parliament’s Committee on Commerce, Industries and Consumer Welfare Relations. Yet, PM Oli chose to provide tacit support to his illegal moves to procure petroleum products from companies run by close friends of major political leaders. How is it that hundreds of petrol tankers and LP gas bullets disappear and people continue to reel under fuel crisis? Why is it that Oli’s government is incompetent when it comes to curbing the black market and bringing the officials involved within the ambit of the law? PM Oli’s quips and verbal assaults are not the solution to our humongous problems. People placed their trust in him to ease their problems, not exacerbate them. People want to see results, not hear jokes.
People impatiently ask: If not now, when? How long are we to suffer?
People impatiently ask: If not now, when? How long are we to suffer?
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