NC will become the largest party in the CA with a clear majority

SEP 30 -
After pressure from the political parties, the Election Commission (EC) decided to extend the deadline for candidate nomination for the November 19 polls by a week to September 30 for the proportional list and October 3 for first-past-the-post. This last week, therefore, has seen much activity on the part of leaders and cadres to secure electoral candidacies. Kamal Dev Bhattarai and Pranaya SJB Rana spoke to Nepali Congress (NC) Central Committee member Gagan Thapa about the NC’s criteria for selecting candidates, its election manifesto and prospects at the polls.

Do you think elections will take place on November 19?

Elections will be held but the question is what kind of elections will be held. Will this be an election that everyone participates in or will it be one that excludes an important political force? The major parties, the government and the required preparations are all ready but the fundamental question is whether Mohan Baidya will take part or not. Now, it looks like we will go to elections without his participation. We have already embarked on that road and I see very little possibility of going back.

So the Congress is ready and of one mind on going to elections without Baidya?

The party has made its decision but I am of the belief that we can still postpone elections if it would allow the Baidya party to come on board. This is not because I am afraid of what Baidya might do. This is related to the peace process. We have compromised a lot for the sake of the peace process. During the last elections, the NC tolerated many things but we did it all for the sake of peace. Now, a significant party involved in the peace process has opposed the entire political process, is taking to the streets and is saying that it will not accept the elections. We cannot just sit back and claim that they don’t matter. I am not so much worried about whether the constitution will be written; it is the entire peace process that is in danger. It is still important to bring Baidya on board but we have to accept the decisions of the party.

Can elections be held without Baidya?

I do not believe that a constitution written without Baidya or an election without Baidya will be illegitimate. I also do not believe that Baidya can prevent elections by getting a few people together and causing problems. The state has enough strength to prevent that. The Nepali people are also not afraid; they cannot be scared off by a few bombs. They are not afraid of anyone. There will be elections, a Constituent Assembly (CA) will be formed and it will do its work. However, what kind of problems will this bring to the peace process?

On a slightly different note, what agendas is the NC taking to the people this time around?

We will clearly tell the people why the constitution was not written, our position on all constitutional issues and that if we get to lead the CA, we will give the Nepali people a constitution within one year. We will also remind them that we are electing a CA and Parliament that will function for four years. The CA might come up with a constitution in six months or a year but there will be no elections for at least four years. During this time, the country will function under the Interim Constitution. The people’s expectations of good governance, positive changes and economic stability cannot be held hostage for four years in the name of transition. So we are going to tell the people all the things we will do based on the Interim Constitution itself, not the new constitution.

Some say that the old CA lacked clarity and maturity on contentious issues. How will you address these issues this time around?

I am afraid that what we call maturity is actually rigidity. The old CA has already done much of the work and the major parties—the UCPN (Maoist), NC, CPN-UML and the Madhesi parties—have a moral obligation to own those accomplishments. The only outstanding issue when it comes to federalism is the number of provinces and whether to make them identity-based. I think this has a wrong connotation. No matter how many provinces we make in Nepal, due to our population distribution, all of them will turn out to be multiple-identity and

multi-language. This time around, all parties will probably go to the CA with their own models of federalism. Now the question is whether this will make us more mature or more rigid. Last time around, the media and civil society blamed the NC for not going to the CA with a federal map. This was made into our weakness when it was really our strength. There was room for flexibility as we could compromise. Now every party will receive their votes based on their federal models. They will have a responsibility to their voters to take a strong stand. I fear that instead of making things easier, it will make things worse.

This week, you will be submitting your list of candidates to contest elections to the Election Commission. What criteria were taken into consideration while distributing tickets?

First, this ticket distribution system needs great reform; this is not a democratic exercise. Last week, there were thousands of people in Kathmandu visiting the homes of top leaders and asking for tickets. It was reminiscent of the Rana-era. They should not be coming here; we should be going to them. Six or seven influential leaders become the givers and everyone else just the acceptors. Second, we are a national party so we will be contesting all 240 constituencies. When any Nepali looks at the photos of those 240 candidates, they should find themselves represented there. That list should be a mirror for the country. Furthermore, we’re asking that the NC field a Madhesi candidate from Kathmandu. There are thousands of Madhesis living in Kathmandu but only the NC has the ability to enable a Madhesi to reach Parliament from Kathmandu. No regional party can do this. This is necessary for our identity as a national party. We have also asked the leadership to consider people from outside the party—experts, representatives of various sectors, young entrepreneurs, people who society recognises. This will add value to the Congress and to the Parliament. Leaders distributing the tickets should understand that their party cadres might be willing to tolerate any burden but the voters will not. They don’t seem to have differentiated between cadres and voters. Voters have the right to reject anyone.

Who do you think is the NC’s voter base?

We don’t have a particular voter base. Everything that others have been portraying as a weakness of the NC is actually our strength. What Nepali politics needs now is a moderate, accommodating force. The NC did not bring up issues of inclusion, federalism or identity but we accommodated them. It seems that those who raise the issues cannot always manage them. But as a moderate force, we can coordinate these issues. After all, there aren’t many outstanding issues. A few days ago, I drafted the entire constitution and presented it to the party. I was able to do this because the majority of the work has already been done. Once we take a position on the number of provinces, their names, the form of governance, citizenship distribution, a few issues relating to the judiciary and land reform, we have a constitution ready. Moreover, because we don’t have a specific voter base, we can make a constitution that will be for everyone. Constitution-making is not a zero game; it should be a win-win for everyone.

On a final note, how many seats do you think the NC will win this time?

I have recently been to around 60 districts and based on my experience, I can say that the NC will become the largest party in the CA with a clear majority. However, there is still quite some time remaining between now and elections, so everything depends on how we choose candidates and how we present ourselves to the people. The other parties are not contesting elections based on their agenda but are opposed to what they say is the NC’s agenda. If the NC did not exist, there would be no basis for them to contest elections. So it also depends on how we deal with this propaganda and how we manage our election campaign. 

Labels: Interview