Everyday event

Corruption, in some form or the other, has become part and parcel of life in Nepal. The Transparency International’s 2014 corruption index shows just how bad the situation is. Our ranking even in South Asia is, to say the least, unenviable. And this will continue if strong and positive measures are not taken to correct the situation because the people most hit by corruption are the poorest amongst us and they constitute the majority. The lifestyle of Nepalis has changed with the times but the economy has not been able to keep up with it. The result has been the desire to make easy money and one of the best ways to do so, apart from downright robbery and theft, is corruption. We have to send our children to the best schools that are prohibitively costly and given the present state of government run educational institutions, most have no choice but to opt for expensive institutions for which the only source of payment is through corruption.

In our part of the world, there seems to be a concept that one does not have to work if one indulges in politics. There are plenty of examples of political figures who have posh residences in the Capital but were known to have come to the Kathmandu Valley virtually penniless. But there are no institutions in the country to investigate such cases and to nip corrupt practices in the bud. Some months ago, ‘Chari’, a well-known don was killed in a police encounter. But instead of asking for an impartial investigation to find out if the encounter was real or fake, the CPN-UML made a hue and cry over the incident thereby providing the proof if any was needed, about the evil nexus between criminals and political parties. This is also a form of corruption at its worst because powerful political parties in our part of the world do not fall under the ambit of laws made for common people like you and me.

Case of CIAA

This is why legislative sub-committees have been summoning the head of the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) to appear before them to answer whatever questions they have. Though the CIAA is a constitutional body like the Legislative Assembly, it is being argued that the Parliament is a sovereign body because it is elected by the people who, in a democracy, are sovereign. The fact is,  even the most sovereign person or body has to observe certain laws, rules and norms. In our case, the Interim Consitution 2007. If the Legislative Assembly is to claim that it is an autonomous body and is answerable to none and can therefore do whatever it wants, then what is the difference between a hereditary ruler and an elected dictator? The reason for which the CIAA chief was summoned by the Legislative Assembly sub-committee has to do with the CIAA’s directives to nullify certain power projects that were long overdue but had not materialised. The belief among people is that political parties and leaders are themselves involved in obtaining the permits but are waiting for the right investors to invest which will yield huge returns. Perhaps, it might do well for other authorities, defying political pressures, to look into this aspect of politcs-business and industrial nexus.

Distant dream

Quite apart from the present legislative-CIAA brawl, it is the question of principles that is more important. The question that needs to be asked and answered sincerely is whether one constitutional body should interfere in the affairs of another constitutional body. The legislature grills persons to be appointed to top positions in the constitutional bodies and as envoys. This is indeed a praiseworthy process. But once appointed, they need to work without being intimidated by the legislature. While this is not to defend the present CIAA chief as a person, a clear separation of powers in a democracy is a must and is one way to avoid conflict of interest which exist in plenty among political parties and those elected to Parliament. If CIAA chief Karki is wrong, then there must be some means to impeach him and strip him off his responsibility. But legislative sub-committees cannot go on summoning him in order to discourage his anti-corruption drive, which can only be described as a very small effort to root out corruption. What the country’s legislature needs to do is expand the scope and horizon of constitutional bodies like the judiciary, Election Commission and the CIAA. But that, we all know, is a projectthat our legislature will hardly ever be willingly to undertake. Under these circumstances, a corruption-free and well-governed Nepal remains a distant dream.