Is federalism still suitable for Nepal?
I am and was not against the concept of federalism. I only kept raising my concern whether it was suitable for such a small country considering its geographical structure and available financial and human resources. I still think that there were not held extensive deliberations about this structure among the constitutional experts, intellect individuals and general public before the then seven party alliance decided to adapt and include in the new constitution. As a result, we used to and still hear even some of the leaders of the major political parties were not in favour of implementing federal structure, however, they did not dare to face their bosses.
Until now, several laws and acts related to implementation of provincial governments in accordance with the constitution are yet to be tabled in and pass through the House which is the sole constitutional responsibility of the federal government led by the Prime Minister K.P.Oli who is also one of the Chairpersons of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP). It has been almost three years Nepal is experiencing federalism under the NCP government. All of the seven provinces except Province 2 are governed by the NCP governments.
The role of the main opposition Nepal Congress which had poorly performed in the last general election has been minimal and disappointing in the effective implementation of federal structure. One of the main reasons behind this was and is its involvement in incorporating federalism in the constitution, whether it was its own initiatives or influenced by external forces. Nobody knows. However, general public and leaders of the fringe political parties blame the major political parties for implementing the federalism under the influence of external powers and are now exerting pressure to scrap it for good.
Just for your fun reading about how the ruling party leaders understand federalism
Karnali crisis resolution another example of anti-federalism approach, politicians and experts say
Provincial leaders question the value of elected people’s representatives if the ruling party leadership’s diktat from Kathmandu matters above all.
The political drama in Karnali has not only highlighted the fault lines in the ruling party and how the top leaders manoeuvre their positions inside it but also how they are trying to weaken the spirit of federalism.
During his meeting with Karnali Chief Minister Mahendra Bahadur Shahi, his challenger Yamlal Kandel and other provincial leaders on Saturday, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said that since the provincial governments are the units of the federal government, the provincial governments alone cannot change the ministers, according to a participant at the meeting.
“He said any changes in the provincial cabinet should be made in coordination with the federal government and the prime minister,” said a participant during the briefing.
But Oli’s diktat has not gone down well among politicians and experts.
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https://kathmandupost.com/politics/2020/10/19/karnali-crisis-resolution-another-example-of-anti-federalism-approach-politicians-and-experts-say
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