(Candidates for the 21st Falgun election are reaching out to the public with their manifestos. They are narrating their agenda.

Meanwhile, Kantipur is launching a special series, ‘Kantipur Debate: Citizens’ Manifesto’, to convey the people’s agenda to parties and candidates. You too can write a manifesto for this series, focusing on a specific area. We will give space to manifestos that are based on facts, figures, and logic.)

The Gen-G uprising of Bhadra 23-24 was not just a momentary dissatisfaction of the youth. That uprising was a serious question raised over the existing structural problems in the functioning of the state. Basically, the establishment of good governance, control of corruption, and the end of the economic inequality created due to it were the central agenda of that uprising.

With hashtags like ‘Nepo Baby, Nepo Kid’, the young generation protested against the trend of determining economic, social, and political opportunities through relationships, access, and political patronage, not qualifications. If we analyze the demands raised by Gen-G in detail, it seems necessary for political parties to make establishing good governance and controlling corruption their main agenda in the upcoming elections.

General Election 2079 Manifesto:

Many commitments, weak implementation

In the 2079 BS election to the House of Representatives, the major political parties had prioritized establishing good governance and controlling corruption in their manifestos. Their manifestos included commitments to strengthen the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, make the public procurement system transparent, make public service delivery digital, expand e-governance, end impunity, and make it mandatory to submit asset details.

The Nepali Congress had expressed commitments in that election to make ‘good governance and transparency’ its main mantra, adopt a zero-tolerance policy against corruption, and make public service delivery technology-friendly and hassle-free. Similarly, the CPN-UML had put forward the slogan of ‘good governance, development, prosperity, and equality’. It also expressed its commitment to empower the ‘Procurement Monitoring Board’ to make the public procurement process transparent, and to implement digital good governance through the concept of ‘No Line: Service Online’. The CPN (Maoist Center) had put forward the resolution of ‘Disruption for Prosperity’ and made public commitments such as forming a high-level commission with authority to control corruption, taking strict action against the guilty, and making the administrative structure accountable to the people with comprehensive reforms.

The National Independent Party had expressed its firm resolve that ‘corruption will not be tolerated’ and had expressed its commitment to investigate and take action on corruption cases at any time without setting a time limit and to keep bodies like the Authority and the courts free from political interference.

During this period, the CPN (Maoist Center) and the CPN-UML led the government. However, both these parties did not even look back on the declarations they had made public. Two other parties, the Nepali Congress and the National Independent Party, also joined the government, but they also ignored the commitments they had made in terms of establishing good governance and controlling corruption. Looking back at the reality faced by the citizens these days, it seems that the commitments of the parties were limited to paper. Investigations in high-level corruption cases are slow, decisions are even slower, and punishments seem to be the exception. In the past three years, political parties have not broken even a single penny in the work of reforming them. 

In the 2079 election, the parties had expressed their commitment to 'zero tolerance' against corruption and 'decentralization of power' in their manifestos. However, in practice, due to political patronage, the work of bringing high-ranking individuals involved in major corruption cases to justice has not progressed effectively. Investigations in some cases including the Patanjali scandal, the fake Bhutanese refugee case, the Lalita Niwas scandal, irregularities at Pokhara Airport, and gold smuggling have raised a glimmer of hope for good governance. The 'digital good governance' and 'hassle-free service' put forward by the parties have not done much. The situation remains as it is, with ordinary citizens still having to spend long hours in government offices for even simple tasks and having to deal with middlemen. 

What should the manifesto be like?

The country is currently in the midst of elections and political parties are in a hurry to prepare manifestos. The manifestos being prepared by the parties targeting the upcoming elections should not be slogan-oriented but should be measurable, time-bound and linked to accountability. Parties should not view corruption as just an economic and legal crime but as an attack on citizens' rights.

When corruption increases in a country, investment in sectors such as education, health, employment and social security decreases. When public service delivery is weak or delayed, citizens are unable to enjoy even the basic benefits of it and inequality increases further. Political parties should internalize this issue while preparing their manifestos.

There is a lot of dissatisfaction among citizens with the ruling style of the parties and the high-level corruption in the country. Although all state structures, including the legislature, parliament, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the media, civil society, the private sector, and the general public, have a role to play in controlling corruption, there is still a tendency at the state leadership level to view corruption as a 'personal deviation'. In fact, it has not been understood that this is the result of policy, process and institutional weaknesses. The current major problems in the context of good governance and corruption control are impunity, political interference, misuse of legal loopholes, and erosion of the capacity of public institutions. 

The upcoming general election is not just a competition to change the government, but also an important opportunity to change the character of state governance. Although political parties have pledged to prioritize corruption control and establishment of good governance in past elections, in practice these promises have remained limited to paper. As a result: public service delivery has weakened. Citizens' trust and confidence in the state has decreased. A culture of impunity has deepened. Inequality has increased. 

Against this background, the manifestos made public by parties need to be more than documents that confuse voters, but rather clear action plans for establishing good governance, controlling corruption and establishing the rule of law. For this, it is necessary to verify the assets of all state bodies, including political leaders and high administrators, publicly and independently. A commitment should be made to ensure an open data system and citizen monitoring in public procurement.

It is necessary for the parties to commit to making the donation and expenditure process of political parties transparent and to have the party's accounts audited by the Office of the Auditor General. It is necessary to improve the efficiency of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, which investigates and investigates corruption, and the special court that makes decisions, and to keep such bodies free from political influence. 

The first condition for controlling corruption is political will. Therefore, merely repeating the slogan of 'zero tolerance against corruption' in the manifesto is not enough. It is necessary to make a clear commitment to make the asset details of ministers, MPs and high-level officials public when they assume or leave office, not to provide political protection for violations of the code of conduct, and not to interfere in investigations against leaders of their own party.

It is necessary for the parties to form a powerful Asset Investigation Commission to investigate the assets of all high-ranking officials and leaders after BS 2062/63, to make the asset details of public representatives public online so that voters can see them every year, and to arrange a digital asset register. 

Although the issue of corruption control and establishment of good governance has been raised in Nepal's democratic practice for a long time, it has not yet been able to achieve structural, policy and practical transformation. Therefore, in the upcoming elections, political parties need to clarify their agendas by focusing on at least the following seven dimensions.

1. There should be a commitment to strengthening the existing institutions working on good governance and corruption control. The first and basic condition for corruption control is the institutional strengthening of the Constitutional Commission, regulatory and legal bodies. Keeping the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority, the Office of the Auditor General, the Department of Money Laundering, the Department of Revenue Investigation, the National Vigilance Center, regulatory and judicial bodies free from political interference is the backbone of promoting good governance. The manifesto should include a clear plan for structural reform of these institutions, expansion of legal powers and strengthening of resources and means. Parties should accept the reality that delay in investigation and prosecution is the main reason for impunity. Political parties should express their commitment in the manifesto to make such bodies free from political interference, independent and professional. Similarly, clear commitments should be made to make the appointment process of such bodies transparent and merit-based, to ensure that there is no delay in investigation and prosecution, and to expand efficiency equally at the federal, provincial, and local levels.

2. Commitment should be expressed to reform, formulate, and strictly implement policies, rules, and laws. Establishment of good governance and control of corruption are not possible without comprehensive reform of the legal framework. Nepal is currently facing the problems of both lack of laws and weak implementation. Currently, there are some laws to control corruption, but they are inadequate, outdated, or ineffective. Therefore, parties should express a commitment to amend corruption-related laws in accordance with the International Convention against Corruption, and to make it mandatory to immediately amend the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority Act, Public Procurement Act, and Money Laundering Act. Commitments such as making laws to investigate retired persons from the judiciary and the Nepali Army, making new laws to investigate and take action against improper acts, and making laws on conflict of interest are necessary. Similarly, strengthening the laws on financial transparency of political parties and election expenditure regulation. And, the issue of adopting a zero tolerance policy for violations of the law should be clearly mentioned in the manifesto. For this, it should be ensured that the legislature is free from the shadow of political parties and that lawmakers are allowed to work autonomously in lawmaking without party pressure. Similarly, the legal provision that protects the decisions of the Council of Ministers from scrutiny by calling them policy-related is increasing major corruption. Therefore, parties should make a concrete commitment through the manifesto to expand the jurisdiction of the Authority and bring the administrative and procurement-related decisions of the Council of Ministers within the scope of scrutiny of the Authority. 

3. Commitment should be expressed for complete digitalization of public service delivery and strengthening of e-governance. Digitizing public services can reduce opportunities for corruption and reduce the distance between the government and the citizens. In this context, parties should express a commitment to make services that directly concern the citizens completely online, and to make the public procurement, contract and budget systems digital and open. Similarly, it is necessary to include clear plans in the election manifesto, such as developing a public dashboard system from plan selection to expenditure details, establishing service centers for the digitally deprived, and automating employee transfers and promotions based on the leader's performance and specific software, not

.

4. A commitment should be expressed to end the extreme politicization, protectionism, and impunity prevailing in the country. The root cause of corruption is political protection and impunity. To break this, political parties should express a clear commitment to implement the principle that 'no one is above the law' in practice. Agendas such as bringing ministers, MPs, and party leadership under the ambit of investigation, conducting independent and impartial investigations into major corruption cases, and implementing merit and ethics in political appointments should be included in the manifesto. यसक्रममा संवैधानिक परिषद्को संरचनागत सुधार, राजनीतिक दलको सदस्य तथा कर्मचारीतन्त्रका पूर्व अधिकारीलाई कुलिङ अफ पिरियडसम्बन्धी व्यवस्था गर्ने, कर्मचारीतन्त्र, विद्यालय, विश्वविद्यालय तथा सार्वजनिक निकायमा भएका दलीय ट्रेड युनियनलाई खारेज गर्ने प्रतिबद्धता दलले व्यक्त गर्नुपर्छ ।

५. संघीय शासन प्रणालीभित्र सुशासनको संस्थागत अभ्यास गर्ने दलीय प्रतिबद्धता हुनुपर्छ । संघीय व्यवस्थामा भ्रष्टाचार स्थानीय तहसम्मै विकेन्द्रित हुँदै गएको छ । यस अवस्थामा स्थानीय र प्रदेश तहका सन्दर्भमा पारदर्शिता र उत्तरदायित्वका स्पष्ट मापदण्ड बनाउने, जनप्रतिनिधिको कार्यसम्पादन मूल्यांकन प्रणाली विकास गर्ने, सामाजिक जवाफदेहिता अभिवृद्धि गर्ने संयन्त्रको कार्यान्वयन अनिवार्यलगायत प्रतिबद्धता घोषणापत्रमा समेट्नुपर्छ । यसैगरी प्रादेशिक तहमा मन्त्रालयको संख्या ३ देखि ५ वटामा मात्रै सीमित गर्ने, संघीय तहमा ११ देखि १४ वटा भित्रमा मन्त्रालयलाई सीमित गर्ने, अनावश्यक निकायलाई तत्काल खारेज गर्नेलगायतका सवाल घोषणापत्रमा व्यक्त हुनु आवश्यक छ । 

६. नागरिक सशक्तीकरण, नागरिक शिक्षा र सामाजिक निगरानीको सबलीकरण गर्ने एजेन्डा घोषणापत्रमा समेटिनुपर्छ । सचेत नागरिकबिना सुशासन सम्भव छैन । त्यसैले विद्यालयदेखि समुदायस्तरसम्म नागरिक शिक्षा र नैतिक मूल्यको प्रवर्द्धन गर्ने, सूचना पाउने हकको प्रभावकारी कार्यान्वयन, भ्रष्टाचारविरुद्ध आवाज उठाउने सूचनादाताको सुरक्षा, नागरिक समाज, सञ्चारमाध्यम र समुदायको निगरानी भूमिकामाथि सम्मान जस्ता प्रतिबद्धता राजनीतिक दलले घोषणापत्रमा समेट्नुपर्छ । आम नागरिकलाई भ्रष्टाचारविरुद्ध सक्रिय बनाउँदै लैजान सकेमात्रै सुशासन दिगो हुन सक्छ । 

७. राजनीतिक संस्कार नैतिकता र नेतृत्व विकास हो । राजनीतिक संस्कार सुधारबिना सुशासन सम्भव छैन । भ्रष्टाचार नियन्त्रणलाई प्रभावकारी र दीर्घकालीन बनाउन राजनीतिक दलहरूले पार्टीभित्र आचारसंहिता कडाइका साथ कार्यान्वयन गर्ने, दलको आम्दानी र खर्च नियमित सार्वजनिक गर्ने, महालेखा परीक्षकबाट अन्तिम लेखा परीक्षण गर्ने, युवा र नयाँ नेतृत्वलाई नैतिक राजनीतितर्फ प्रोत्साहन गर्ने एजेन्डा पनि घोषणापत्रमा समेट्नुपर्छ । 

यसैगरी निर्वाचन प्रणाली सुधार राजनीतिक दलहरूको घोषणापत्रको अनिवार्य एजेन्डा बन्नुपर्छ । हाल निर्वाचन जित्न कालो धन, अनियन्त्रित चन्दा र अत्यधिक खर्चको प्रयोग बढ्दै जाँदा भ्रष्टाचार संस्थागत हुँदै गएको छ । यस अवस्थालाई अन्त्य गर्न दलहरूले घोषणापत्रमार्फतै राष्ट्रिय मान्यता प्राप्त राजनीतिक दलहरूलाई प्राप्त मतको अनुपातका आधारमा राज्यबाट प्रत्यक्ष अनुदान उपलब्ध गराउने, निजी तथा अनियमित चन्दामा पूर्ण प्रतिबन्ध लगाउने र सम्पूर्ण चुनावी खर्च अनिवार्य रूपमा बैंकिङ प्रणालीमार्फत मात्रै गर्ने स्पष्ट प्रतिबद्धता जनाउनुपर्छ । साथै भ्रष्टाचारजन्य कसुरमा अदालतमा मुद्दा दायर भएका दलका नेता तथा कार्यकर्ताको साधारण सदस्यता निलम्बन हुने र दोषी प्रमाणित भए दलको सदस्यता लिन अयोग्य हुने विषयमा दलहरूको प्रतिबद्धता आउनुपर्छ ।