BMD

The look of Kathmandu has now changed with the start of the 14th general convention of the Nepali Congress (NC). Most roads and streets of the capital city have turned out to be colorful. One can see a lot of banners hanging around the city, especially Bhrikutimandap where the convention is being held, and nearby areas. More banners and posters with pictures of candidates and the party's founding leaders have been set up after the filing of nominations on Saturday. A total of 548 leaders have fielded their candidacies for 134 positions.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, Shekhar Koirala, Prakash Man Singh, Bimalendra Nidhi, Kalyan Gurung and Yubaraj Neupane on the race for the presidency while several other renowned faces, including some young leaders, are fighting for other key positions like vice-presidents and general secretaries. But senior leader Ram Chandra Poudel and leader Krishna Prasad Sitaula have not filed their nominations for any post.
Despite being the country’s oldest democratic party, the NC in the past was criticised for not consolidating democracy within the party. But looking at the number of groups and contenders vying for various positions, the party now seems to be strengthening internal democracy. As voting for the new leadership is slated for December 13, all the candidates and their supporters have remained busy wooing the general convention representatives.

Being held with the slogan of 'enthusiasm, unity and transformation', the general convention seems to have brought much buoyancy to leaders and workers of the party. It is needless to say that this convention holds a lot of significance as it the first assembly after the country has gone for federal setup. The convention is supposed to have held much earlier. But it was rescheduled for several times due to various factors.

The party has come forward with a catchy slogan of ending the internal factionalism and bringing about the much-needed transformations within it. But the convention appears to become just a platform to elect the new leadership. The party is not focusing on transforming it into a more dynamic and responsible force. Until some years in the past, the NC used to be regarded as a political party having clear ideology, principles and goals. Its guiding principle is democratic socialism as propounded by its founding leader BP Koirala.

All the candidates belonging to the varied camps have claimed that they are totally guided by BP's ideals. But the party seems to have been deviated from the principle of democratic socialism. This is the reason why many anomalies have emerged in the party.

Considering this, all the genuine party leaders, workers and well-wishers have conceded the fact that the party should be transformed so that it can deal with its confusions related to plans and policies. The party had to hold extensive discussions on its principles and policies for charting out its future course and making reforms. It is also necessary to review the party's past roles and activities.

It is sad to note that the party's Mahasamiti, which is supposed to discuss ideological issues, was able to meet only one time in the past five years. This shows that the NC has failed to remain focused on such vital matters. The party must not put the ideological issues in shadow when it aspires to lead the nation to the path of stability, development and prosperity.