By Deepak Joshi Pokhrel
A few days ago, a senior CPN-Maoist Centre leader while addressing a program in the valley, said that the party has survived potential disintegration with its recent drive entitled “Maoist with People”: a campaign for special transformation. His statement clearly illustrates that the party is very vulnerable in the political corridor, especially, after its poor performance in the last general election. With this campaign, the Maoists sought to reach out to people at the grassroots and revamp the party structure.
Well, this is not the first time the Maoist leaders have uttered such words. Over the years, it has made several such statements. In fact it has been customary to resort to rhetorical and flamboyant instigating the masses mainly the people at the grassroots. But such expressions have seldom been translated into an action. Just last week, the former Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chair said that the time has come to launch a movement against the incumbent coalition government led by Pushpakamal Dahal to save the country from being drowned. It seems Oli was trying to tell us that the country was vibrant–economically, socially, culturally and politically, while he was at the power of helm.
No doubt, the country has been struggling to contain the inflammation impacting the rural masses in particular. Poor governance, ineffective service delivery, corruption and abuse of authority, and unemployment still pose as grave threat to overall development. As an opposition leader, it is understandable to project the government in a negative light laying the ground for his rise in power. When he introspects himself, he will find that he is no different either.
Just to recall, the Nepali Congress ruled the country several times after we restored democracy. Sadly it never attempted to understand the pulse of the people. Rampant corruption, poverty, unemployment, abuse of authority and poor governance were not taken seriously by the grand old party. People were fed up with NC’s working modality and its leadership and looking for an alternative force to ensure political stability.
People heaved a sigh of relief when the two communists–CPN-UML and CPN Maoist Centre–announced to merge and fight the general election. The people were happy not because two communists were joining hands but because they were jubilated thinking that this alliance would end political instability which had been taking a heavy toll on the overall development of the nation.
“Two swords cannot fit into the same sheath”, goes the old saying. This was aptly proven by our two communist leaders–Dahal and Oli. Both are egoistic, stubborn, ruthless and unaccountable to the people. Soon after reaching power, the indifferences began to emerge and both were actively engaged in horse trading. When the confrontation reached the pinnacle, they decided to move apart taking the nation hostage. In plain words, their lust for power invited political and constitutional void. What is true is that Nepali communist leaders are losing their credibility owing to their series of ideological deviations and a yawning gap between their commitment and performance.
The biggest problem with communist parties in Nepal is that they are not in a position to compromise over petty issues for the broader national interest. They are passionate about power–no matter how it comes. While signing the merger agreement, both Dahal and Oli reached a consensus to lead the nation on a rotational basis. But, according to political observers, Oli breached the agreement by ditching Dahal.
Apart from egoistic, stubborn and unaccountable, the communists in Nepal have been known for their double standard. They prioritize power over political ideology. This is evident in the recent move of Dahal to join hands with the Nepal Congress to reach the power of helm.
When we assess Nepalese Communist parties, we will find that the communist parties are known for preparing thick political and orgnisational reports, holding periodic national conventions, building tight organisational structures, and conducting frequent meetings of their various central bodies. We will also find that they tend to swing as per the context to reach the affluent position. Political ideology and dogma do not value them and can compromise if it is meant to benefit them.
Many political observers say that it is meaningless to conduct rounds of meetings if they do not address people’s problems and concerns. They organise a separate convention to write the statute that sets rules, norms, values, behaviours and discipline for running the party. But there are instances in which the statute’s provisions turn to dust when they become obstacles to meeting the ambition of top leaders.
Ever since the communists joined mainstream politics, they have been saying that “socialism” is dear to all left groups. In their words, they are indoctrinated with socialism. But the moot question is that have they really embraced it in theory and practice?
We have seen around half a dozen communist prime ministers in the last three decades. Exceptionally, we have not seen any credible roadmap taking the country to the robust path of rapid economic growth and sustainable development. There has been a tendency among the left and non-left governments to compete for announcing populist programmes without a substantive economic base to support them.
As a thinking being we believe that the communist party-led governments are supposed to enhance the public sector but there have been little efforts in building a socialism-oriented economy as envisaged in the constitution. But in practice, the major communist parties have donned neo-liberal garbs and followed Western narratives to stay afloat in national politics, giving short shrift to their stated goals of communism.
With such a tendency, do they have the guts to call themselves the communists?
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.
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