Like any normal kid, I have always wondered why there is a need of politics and government. When elders had discussions about it during their usual tea gatherings, using terms and abbreviations that felt alien to my young mind; I always pondered on this question. Our country has been through a lot of political twists in the last two decades, but the recent scenario of our economic problem with India—that has put our country not just in a crisis but also in a triggering stimulus of self-dependency—has awoken many people.

Our country is now trying to focus on self-fulfillment—on sectors like agriculture and hydro-power—but the main challenge lies in developing the minds of our people, for which education is not enough.

Our education system focuses on academics but not on the overall development of a student. This is the reason why I, a comparatively lucky youth with an age now eligible to vote, holds no distinct political opinion as I was never taught the difference in political ideologies of our political parties. I was taught history, dates, names of parties, government bodies, roles they played but not the essential core.

To quote the German writer Goethe, “If you treat an individual as he is, he will remain how he is. But if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.” And the same applies with children. School going students are considered too small to read newspapers and books other than what is in their syllabus. Even educated parents focus on urgent needs of their children rather than the important ones which Stephen R Covey points to be the root of ineffectiveness in his most influential book The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People.

Rather than spending time and effort in managing what has already reaped, it is a better option to sow well and save time. Let’s think for a minute and question our parenting. Why don’t we focus to sow right at the right time? Why do we always treat children as children and not as responsible future leaders? Why do we not value their opinion? Why do we set a limitation for their ability to learn? Why don’t we inculcate the habit of learning in them as early as possible, as Mitch Hedberg says, “Every book is a children’s book if the kid can read.”

Basnet is a +2 graduate from  Golden Gate Int’l College