Blogdai's Endorsement for Prime Minister

Well we did it. We actually held a kind of, sort of, election. All in all, it was a brave effort. Hats off to the average, and especially rural, citizen for braving all manner of obstruction and intimidation to cast a vote.

(Above) Bhoj Raj Pokherel, Election Commission guru smiles

while man on left tries to figure out Nepali ballot

system.

Girija tried to avoid elections and was successful for 10 years, Ian Martin tried to bungle the security, the YCL tried to kill them, Madhav Kumar Nepal tried to cheat them, but in the end, elections were held; and one man, kept his cool and pulled off what was thought to be impossible: Any kind of National initiative.

Who was this man that, for at least one day got all Nepali's to think about their country all at once? It was blogdai's nominee for the next Prime Minister of Nepal:

Bhoj Raj Pokherel

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Pokherel has suffered long with this election process. blogdai remembers last September when our man pleaded with Girija for the proper materials, training and funding to pull off the scheduled November election. He chastened the political parties for their ineptness and disregard for the preparations necessary. Alas, those elections never happened, but Pokherel held his head high.

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This time around, thanks to international pressure, Pokherel had all the endorsements he needed. Still, it was a daunting task. Prepare all precints for voting, print the necessary papers, establish voting and campaigning guidelines, and provide for the security of voters. As far as we know, he did it all.

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When was the last time (ever?) that we witness a Nepali politician actually get his hands dirty and solve a problem on a national level?

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On the other hand....

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----60 precincts are petitioning for a revote for various claims of unfairness and more will follow.

----Attacks and widespread intimidation were reported at many precincts.

----Strong Maoist showings are already being contested by the major parties.

He did his job successfully: a rarity in Nepali politics, and for that, he should be congratulated.

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Election Hangover

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It looks like the Maoists won 11 of 21 Constituent Assembly (CA) seats. Considering that they've claimed outright that they will keep going until a Communist state is established, we should all fear that this Maoist victory will embolden Maoist politicians to be bullies in parliament; and, worse, embolden YCL thugs in the countryside.

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The Nepali Constitution does not specify the exact power exchange or balance between parliament and the Constituent assembly. Look for seasoned politician to manipulate the CA agenda. We've already heard Girija say that the first duty of the CA is to vote the monarchy out. WHOA! Look who's setting the CA agenda and the result already?

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Beware of the follow up. International observers are cooing over the success of the polls. They'll all go home and get job promotions, fine. But, the devil is in the details. Re-votes and disputed counts will keep us busy for months. Plus, who will insure that the CA does not succumb to the same cronyism and corruption that has infected parliament. And, biggest of all, what will insure that there will be regular periodic elections after this one? Everyone knows the government was pressured into holding these elections. Will the world community be around to pressure them in the future?

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Prime Minister Pokherel would solve these problems in a heartbeat, I betcha.

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-=blogdai