Bad governance continues unabated in local bodies

Political parties major elements of fiduciary risk; MoLD to issue warning letters soon

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Lalitpur, November 5

About Rs 45 billion is allocated for the local bodies every year but the budget is widely misused in the involvement of the political parties.

A government official belonging to an union said that only 30 per cent budget allocated for development is properly utilised in the local bodies. "Some 70 per cent is misused in the involvement of political parties by preparing fake documents of development activities," he claimed.

Dr jagadish Chandra Pokhrel, former Vice-Chairman of the National Planning Commission, also said that the political parties were involved in distributing development budget equally in many districts. "Political parties have captured the tenders in local bodies. This chaos is very serious problem, which should be immediately addressed from national level with political debate," he said. "The governments are centralised but local governance is falling down and down," he added.

The Ministry of Local Development (MoLD) assesses the performance and development activities of about 25 District Development Committees (DDC) every year. The MoLD has recently monitored 20 DDCs in the current fiscal year. Among them, the ministry has received reports of 16 districts--Gorkha, Lamjung, Kailali, Kanchanpur, Rautahat, Dang, Dailekh, Siraha, Dhanusha, Mahottari, Sunsari, Jhapa, Gulmi, Rupandehi, Syangja and Baglung, according to the MoLD. The reports of four districts--Makwanpur, Lalitpur, Dhading and Sankhuwasabha are yet to be compiled.

The violations of rules and regulations, and bad governance are rampant in the majority of districts, said the members of the monitoring teams. "Only Some districts such as Makwanpur have better improved the performance," said Rishi Raj Acharya, chief at the Monitoring and Evaluation Section, MoLD.

There are 75 DDCs and 99 municipalities including 41 newly declared but unauthorised municipals and about 3,770 village development committees across the country. The government has allocated about Rs 45 billion including some Rs 15 billion foreign aids for the local bodies.

The monitoring reports revealed that the misuse of development funds, rampant distribution of budget under pressure of political parties, violation of Local Self-Governance Act--2055BS, unethical selection of plans and implementation and poor auditing system.

Read More

Local election a must to check misuse of devt funds

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
KATHMANDU: July 2
The main opposition Nepali Congress (NC) has rejected the proposal of the Ministry of Local Development that seeks to restructure the political mechanism at the local bodies on the basis of votes that political parties bagged in the Constituent Assembly elections. 

The NC was responding to the ministry’s call for suggestions from 30 political parties represented in the CA on whether to go for fresh elections or revamp the mechanism on the basis of CA votes. The deadline to offer suggestions expires on July 9.

The ministry is set to table the proposal to the cabinet, stressing restructuring of the political mechanism in all 75 district development committees (DDCs), 58 municipalities and 3,915 village development committees (VDCs) on the basis of CA votes, presenting fresh elections as an option, according to ministry secretary Sushil Ghimire. 

NC Vice-President Ram Chandra Paudel said the revamping of the political mechanism on the basis of CA votes is not acceptable as the votes will not mean much once the CA’s term expires on August 31. 

“There is rampant corruption in local bodies and misuse of development funds. The only solution is holding local body elections as soon as possible,” Paudel argued at a meeting with Prime Minister Jhala Nath Khanal today after submitting a report on the proposal to Khanal.

“We are also for holding local body elections as per Article 139 (1) of the Interim Constitution,” said Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya, spokesperson for the ministry. 

“If the government is not ready to hold elections, an interim local body mechanism should be formed to regulate the activities of local bodies till next local elections,” he said. 

“We should either go for election or form a new mechanism to check massive misuse of development funds in local bodies,” Thapaliya reasoned.

After the abolition of monarchy, five major political parties had decided to nominate their representatives in local bodies in the absence of elected representatives. 

The civic bodies have been running without elected representatives for about nine years.

If the ministry has its way, the revamped mechanism will have one representative each for 3 per cent of CA votes with a catch that a political party cannot claim more than 50 percent of total seats in each mechanism. 

The proposal has proposed five representatives in each VDC and seven 

in each DDC and municipality. “Moreover, the executive coordinator or the deputy must be a woman and other members should be selected so as to make the body inclusive,” Thapaliya said.

Read More

Waste from Everest being taken to Kathmandu

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Namche (Solukhumbu), May 30
About five metric tonnes of waste dumped in the Everest region will be brought to Kathmandu within a few days..

In the initiation of Everest Summiteers Association (ESA), the government of Nepal, Eco Himal, Nepal Mountaineering Association (NMA), Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee were involved in the collection of the waste from April 17 to May 27. The government provided Rs 7.5 million, Carlsberg Beer Rs 2 million, NMA Rs 2 Million, Laxmi Bank Rs 500,000 and donors from Sweden US$ 110,000 for the Saving Everest Campaign attempted from 2008 by ESA.

A total of 29 mountaineers were involved in collecting waste from base-camp to 8,700m of Everest more than a month.

They collected 8.1 metric tonnes of waste dumped in the Everest region since 1953 at Namche where 3.2 metric tonnes of waste, specially plastics and papers will be disposed within month at Namche and rest of the amount including oxygen cylinder, helicopter debris, metals, cans and bottles will be send to Kathmandu.

Wongchu Sherpa, president of the ESA, said that 4.9 metric tonnes of waste would be brought to Kathmandu by air by tomorrow. “We will suggest to keep some of the materials in museums and others will be handed to the government,” he said.

Sherpa further said that the campaign was initiated after the foreigners asked me garbage dumped in Everest dirty persons who dumped the waste at Everest. "Then we started campaigning to clean Everest targeting to collect at least 8 tonnes of garbage dumped in the highest peak of the world," he said.

"We will continue to clean the region next year too," he said. "Cleaning once is not enough but the government should make policy to discourage abandoning waste on the Himalaya," he said.

Carrying about 150kgs of materials each person, about 35,000 foreign visitors accompanying some 80,000 porters and helpers trek to the Everest every year, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoTCA).

Pasang Sherpa, mountaineer involved in collecting waste, said that they had to work up to minus 40 degree Celsius amidst challenges of death threats. "We had to spend 18 hours at a camp of about seven hours at the high altitude," he said. "We slept only two hours few nights on the high snow during the campaign."
However, the government was indifferent to clean the waste for about six decades, Wongchu blamed. “It failed to address the issue taking legal action,” he added.

Murari Bahadur Karki, joint secretary at the MoTCA, said that there was law of confiscating desposit of US$ 4,000 to trek on Everest if they throw waste on the Himalaya. "However, it is yet to be implemented fully," he said. "Both private and government should work jointly to get success," he said.

Karki also said that there was a need of cleaning other Himalayan peaks of the country.
About 2,000 metric tonnes of waste has been dumped in the Himalayan peaks and some 80 metric tonnes of waste at Everest region since 1953.

Read More

Govt intending to distribute Rs 900M to political cadres

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, June 9

The Ministry of Physical Planning and Works (MoPPW) under political pressure has created new development plans of Rs 900 million at the end of the fiscal year intending to distribute the amount to the cadres of the ruling political parties.

The MoPPW created new 393 road plans of Rs 220 million about a month ago under 249 of the Budget Book at the end of the fiscal year. The Ministry of Finance (MoF) and the National Planning Commission have already approved the plans, according to the MoPPW.

The plans of Rs 220 are said to be approved under the pressure from MoPPW Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi. Of Rs 220, some 35 per cent will go for Rayamajhi's district Arghakhachi and about 20 per cent for Law Minister Prabhu Sah's district Rautahat while remaining portion for other districts, the government officials requesting anonymity told exclusively. Both Rayamajhi and Sah are from UCPN-Maoist party.

Following the first step, the cadres of the ruling parties--UCPN-Maoist, CPN-UML, CPN-ML, Madheshi Janadhikar Forum-Nepal among others demanded the MoPPW to create similar new programmes of Rs 680 million. The MoPPW approved these programmes and sent to the MoF and NPC for approval two weeks ago. "It will take about two weeks for approval. "How will the allocated budget be properly implemented in last two weeks of the fiscal year?" the officials wondered.

The government allocated Rs 500 million for about 3,000 road programmes under 249 of the regular budget programme for the fiscal year. The budget allocation varies from Rs 50,000 to Rs 300,000 to each of such plans. If such a road project links two districts, up to Rs 2 million is allocate for one programme.

The government officials are skeptical over the implementation of the new budget allocated in the last hour in development activities. "The regular budget allocated for the current fiscal year is unlikely to be spent more than 80 per cent. So the new budget is impossible to be implemented in time and more likely to be misused by the political cadres," they said.

KATHMANDU: The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has been preparing to transfer the budget of a development region to another region against the fiscal budget speech. Rs 60.7 million allocated for road development in the Far-West Development Region and an unknown amount of Mid-West Development Region are being transferred to other regions, said MoPPW officials. "The MoF did not provide additional budget for well undergoing projects as in the past years despite its commitment owing to low revenue collection and government plan to allocate unused budget for energy bank," they said. --

A meeting of the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on June 7 directed the MoPPW and the MoF not to transfer balance of payment to the smaller projects except national priority P1 and natural disaster rescue programmes. It also ordered the government not to release any budget to the NGOs in the remaining period of the current fiscal year.

NPC Vice-Chairman Dr Dinesh Chandra Devkota said that the NPC approved the MoPPW programmes of Rs 220 about a month ago thinking the programmes of new government. "The government can allocate additional budget up to 10 per cent of the total national budget," he said. "We approve only programmes. The MoF and MoPPW are responsible for budget implementation. I cannot say how they allocate the budget," he added.

"There is no chance of approval of the remaining programme of Rs 680 million following the PAC direction," said Devkota. "We will discourage ill-intentions."

Minister Rayamanjhi, who is in Gulmi district visit now, said on phone that the projects of Rs 220 were already started and going on. "The government is yet to approve Rs 680 million. We will monitor and not let them misuse the development funds," he claimed.

Read More

Palpa where beauty dances

Read More

Shortest man of the world on the way

Khagendra Thapa Magar, 19, who is the shortest man of the world recorded in the Guniess Book of the World Records. While sitting, his body is equal to one-liter mineral water bottle. He was on a microbus on the way to Pokhara from Kathmandu last week.

Read More

Famous four temples on verge of collapse

Bishnu Prasad Aryal
Kathmandu, January 27

Famous four Hindu temples of the country are at a pathetic condition, waiting for renovation as soon as earlier. Delay in renovation is putting them on verge of collapse. The  temples are in a sorry state of repair despite rich income.

According to the Department of Archeology (DoA), Muktinath Temple in Mustang, Mankamana in Gorkha, Ram Mandir in Janakpur and Pashupatinath in Kathmandu are at high risk. The DoA is responsible to renovate three of them while the autonomous Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) is solely accountable to renovation of Pashupatinath.

"There is an urgent need to renovate all of these temples," said Bishnu Raj Karki, Director General at the DoA. "However, we are not at a financially strong position to begin renovation," he said. "I am preparing separate proposals for the renovation of three temples--Muktinath, Manakamana and Ram Mandir," he added.

The DoA is entitled to renovate all the older temples than 100 years while the Ministry of Federal Affairs, Constituent Assembly, Parliamentary Affairs and Culture (MoFACPAC) is responsible for other cases, said Rishikesh Niraula, under-secretary at the MoFACPAC.

Muktinath is one of the biggest shrine as Pashupatinath while Manakamana is overwhelmingly famous for fulfilling their wishes and Ram Mandir belongs to outstanding art of Mithila. "The condition of Mankamana is at high danger as the temple has bent down for about a decade," said the Ministry sources. "Muktinath is also not out of serious risk as Ram Mandir."

According to DG Karki, at least Rs 70 million is necessary for Manakamana, Rs 40 million for Muktinath and Rs 25 million for Ram Mandir. "Other several temples including Baraha Kshetra are also in need of renovation but they will be renovated in the next phase," said Karki.

The heritages at main temple of Pashupatinath have gone cracked for about two years and the roof of main temple is leaking. Moreover, all of the age-old infrastructures are damaged by mice.

Narrottam Baidya, treasure at the PADT, said that they were going to begin renovation in near future. "Now, we are busy at preparation for electric crematorium. As soon as we call e-bid for the crematorium probably tomorrow, we will start process for renovation," he said.

However, Karki could not divulge when the renovation of three temples would be started. "We don't have any fund now. After we collect the funds, we will begin the renovation," he said. "We are on the process to raise funds."

Karki informed that they first would set up a fund by collecting themselves. "As we collect some money, we will appeal for donations," he added.

Interestingly, the millions of donations offered by the devotees in all of the temples mainly in Pashupatinath and Manakamana are not in records. The priests gobble them without transparency. "We need to maintain transparency of all internal earnings of these temples. If we will be able for this, a huge amount will be collected within a few years," said Baidya, adding that they were amending its act provisioning strong transparency.

Read More

Light comes to wake up dreamers

Read More

A moment just aside plays poetic strings

A view of Kathmandu valley and pigeons having snacks with men at a canteen in Lalitpur, Nepal.

Read More

Rising sun in Pokhara reveals stunning art of beauty

Read More

Decentralisation defunct for two decades

Bishnu Prasad Aryal

Kathmandu, January 4

All the governments after the restoration of democracy in 1990 have crippled the decentralisation policy, an effective tool of good governance in democracy. Only four meetings were held on the issue in two decades.

Meetings of the Decentralisation Implementation and Monitoring Committee (DIMC), the ever-biggest body headed by Prime Minister took place in Janury 17, 2000; March 28, 2001; January 8, 2002 and October 14, 2009, according to the Ministry of Local Development (MoLD), a focal ministry. The meeting should take place at least once a year. The schedule of DIMC meeting was increased to three times a year on March 28, 2001.

The Decentralisation Implementation Action Plan2058BS is in helpless situation. DIMC meetings decided to amend all contradicting rules and regulation with laws, give priority to local level plans in all ministries, establishment of local service commission, projection of line agencies under District Development Committees and review on number of local bodies. These serious issues are yet to be implemented, said Narayan Thapa, chief at Decentralisation Section, MoLD. “However, other petty decisions have been practiced to some extent,” he said.

“Not a single meeting was held in 2010 too,” said Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya, spokesperson for the MoLD. “This has badly affected in decentralisation and governance,” he said.

The policy of decentralisation was included in 1991 constitution. The Local Self Governance Act 2055BS and Regulation 2056BS clearly provision the objectives of the decentralisation on empowerment of local bodies, effectiveness, accountability, rights and use of resources in local level. They also include democratic process, transparency, people’s participation in development, financial resource management, local leadership and establishment of civil societies.

Bimal Koirala, former chief secretary, said that it was the result of government’s non-commitment towards the concept. “All the governments were centralised in Singhdurbar instead of reaching to people,” he said . “The local bodies should be empowered with political, administrative and economic rights,” he said.

Koirala further said that there was no option of decentralisation in any system either federal or unitary one. “No government willed to devolve power in local level. As a result country had to face conflict owing to the people’s frustration,” he added.

DIMC list

• Prime Minister: Chairperson
• MoLD Minister: Vice-Chairperson
• Govt Ministers: Members
• Chiefs of the Parliamentary Committees
• NPC Vice-Chairperson
• NMC members
• Govt Chief Secretary
• Govt secretaries
• Each representative from political parties elected in parliament
• Presidents of local bodies union and federations
• MoLD secretary: Member secretary

 Working Committee

• MoLD Minister: Coordinator
• MoLD secretary: Member
• Six experts from decentralisation, revenue, accounts, rural development, administration and law sectors
• A Special Class Govt secretary

 The working committee on decentralisation was formed once in the beginning, leaving it defunct for all. Interestingly, Minister for Local Development Purna Kumar Sherma Limbu, Vice-Chairman of DIMC, was ignorant about his position and the role of the committees. “It is the time of federalism and power projection to central, regional and local governments,” he said.

“The vacuum of elected representatives in local bodies for eight years affected in the implementation of the policy,” he said. “It is difficult to implement laws and rules in transitional phase,” he added.

Read More