Good Intention Leads To Victory

These days, my acquaintances and friends from different parts of the country and abroad ask me questions like, "What's going on in your place? Are you okay? What do you think about Balen Shah's entry into national politics? Do you think he should be the Prime Minister of your country? Who is this Balen Shah who has a lot of media coverage recently?" Such questions compel me to closely observe Balen Shah's activities. Because of his candidacy in Jhapa-5, his campaign has particularly highlighted Damak, where he is staying for his election campaign. 

Everybody has seen how he is getting people's attention from the eastern to the western parts of Nepal. It seems like he is the only hope to bring positive changes in Nepal. There are masses gathered to meet him and share their problems. Whether Balen wins or not in the upcoming election or will become the next Prime Minister is not a topic to discuss here because speculations do not work every time. Let's leave all this to the result of the election. As far as I am concerned, I have been observing him as a person, not as a politician, and I have found that he is teaching us different lessons that are obviously useful in our lives. 

A good listener

First of all, he is a good listener. When he meets the local people to learn about their situation, he patiently listens to them, and then only he responds. I have never seen him interrupt others to make his point or to be heard louder. Usually, what happens - people just want to talk or they interrupt others without allowing them to complete their sentences. This is regarded as a breach of the communication rule. In addition, there is a high risk of communication breakdown due to a lack of proper listening.  It is said that if you are not a good listener, you cannot be a good speaker. 

I have found Balen Shah to be an extremely goal-oriented person. He sets some goals and will not derail even an inch until achieving them. For instance, we can see how organised his nationwide tour is. He has not wasted a single day loitering here and there. He is determined to meet the deadlines of his tasks. In his capacity as a Mayor, whatever he has done to beautify Kathmandu within a short period of time is also evidence of his determination to complete certain work within a specified time. Balen seems to be an expert in executing his strategic plan. 

Another aspect I have seen in Balen is that he is capable of managing a crisis. He lost his father nearly two months ago. One can imagine how shattered he must be from this irreparable loss. As he has promised himself to transform the country basically by good governance, anti-corruption and many other measures, he hid his grief and moved towards the direction to achieve his dream of nation building. As if his father's passing away was not enough, Balen recently lost his dear friend Dinesh Sitaula during a political campaign tour in Achham. He managed this as well and moved on.

Among all strengths, I have found the most impressive one is his tolerance for criticism. A handful of people are throwing baseless criticisms at him continuously but he chooses to be quiet. Sometimes I am upset to hear filthy comments and want to yell at those insensitive people who make such comments, but Balen is a different person. He states that he takes negative statements positively. He also believes that the so-called critics are, in fact, promoting him, as the general public can differentiate what is true and what is false about him.

Somewhere I have read that 'less is more' and this applies to Balen Shah. Some of the political leaders talk nonsense all the time; they make false promises to deceive the public but in Balen's case, his actions speak louder than his words. He does not want to waste his energy on unnecessary talk; he saves it for better purposes. If he needs to speak, he uses every word meaningfully. He talks little but when he talks, talks logically.

Positive side

I accept Balen Shah may have weaknesses, who doesn't? But if we look at his positive side, I am sure we can take a lot of inspiration from him. He is a man with a clear mission and vision. If one can develop Balen's level of determination and clarity, they can achieve any goal they set in their life. The youths all over the country may also have experienced the same thing, so they are after Balen with a slogan, 'Balen dai! Balen dai'. They look up to him as a role model. They have put their hope and trust in him. 

Whether Balen will become the Prime Minister after the Falgun 21 election or not does not matter much, like for others who declare that if the election result is not in their favour, they will boycott it. Even if he loses this election, Balen will definitely find other options to lead his life successfully and meaningfully. I know people with pure intentions and determination will never fail. Being one of his admirers, I wish him all the best.    

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, February 6, 2026 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]

Candidates Mustn't Forget Gen Z Agenda

 Until last week, people were doubtful regarding the upcoming election of members of the House of Representatives scheduled for March 5. But what was seen on the 20th of January draws a different picture. On this day, political leaders with old and new faces eagerly filed their candidacies across the country. This scenario has obviously prepared the ground for the general election.  Among all places, the most talked about place has become Jhapa-5, where Kathmandu Metropolitan City's former mayor and Rashtriya Swatantra Party senior leader Balendra Shah or Balen and former prime minister and CPN - UML chair KP Sharma Oli filed their candidacies. Now, the public is curious to see who will win this electoral battle between them. Interestingly, both of them have projected themselves as candidates for Prime Minister.    

My concern here is not to support one or the other candidate. However, I will use my voting right to vote for a genuine contestant. What is more important is the responsibilities to be fulfilled by the new government, which seems to be formed sooner rather than later. The government should not forget why the Gen Z movement occurred on September 8 and 9. The general public's trust has been shattered due to the monopoly of the earlier governments, where mainly three major political parties - UML, Nepali Congress and CPN-Maoist Centre - were involved. So, that lost trust must be gained by the newly elected government by taking immediate actions for the pending issues.

Deep-rooted corruption 

The first and foremost thing to do is to find out the criminals who were involved in killing more than 70 innocent people during the Gen Z movement, and then to punish them according to the law. All Nepali people and particularly the martyr families, are waiting for justice. Another issue to be addressed is the eradication of corruption, which is deeply rooted in all levels of governance systems. For instance, bribery is a common practice in almost all government offices. Wherever you go, your work will not get done smoothly unless you bribe in some way. As a result, the general public is suffering greatly.

 I think we are being corrupted in a sense because of the state system. To accelerate the completion of our work, we prefer to pay extra money rather than wait unnecessarily for long, or we bribe a taxi driver and rush to our destination instead of confronting him for demanding a higher fare than needed. Many such incidents keep happening in our everyday lives. The third and most serious issue to be addressed is to stop brain drain and unemployment. These days, people are moving to foreign countries mainly for two reasons. They leave Nepal either to study further or to get employment. 

The ultimate goal of students is also to reside in a foreign land to secure a better life. We are pretty aware of the fact that brain drain and foreign employment have invited different kinds of problems in the country. Firstly, let's discuss the problems related to brain drain.  It is said that over 1,00,000 youths are departing Nepal annually in recent years for higher education. This significantly impacts the nation's human resources and economy. In addition, such students are at a high risk of depression, anxiety or even suicide due to family pressure, study and workload. Most of the students go abroad with a heavy loan, which their parents expect to be paid as soon as possible. 

The situation will not be favourable for newly arrived students in a foreign land. They need to juggle with many things, such as accommodation, study, work and familiarisation with a new lifestyle. They may not be able to cope with all this and start losing their sanity.  Wasting youth energy this way is not good for the nation.  Usually, people choose foreign employment to uplift their life standard or simply to fulfill their basic needs of lodging, fooding and clothing. According to recent reports, more than 7, 00,000 to 8, 00,000 Nepali people go abroad annually seeking employment. Among them, around 2, 00,000 are unskilled and the remaining are semi-skilled or skilled. Such workers include both men and women. 

Contribution 

Although they contribute massively to the country's economy through their remittances, their family life has been jeopardised in most of the cases. Mostly, children suffer a lot in such families. Both father and mother have a great role in shaping their children's future but sadly, either one or sometimes both of their parents are absent in their lives at the stage when they need them the most. Such a situation may lead to children's destructive behaviour, bad company, drug addiction or even crimes.   

So, what can be done to keep the people in Nepal itself so that they can support the process of nation-building? First of all, after completion of their degree, there must be a job guarantee for youths in the respective fields of their studies. Along with this, the salary must also be lucrative so that they will not be tempted to look for better job opportunities abroad. Secondly, there must be sufficient and dignified employment opportunities for those people who reluctantly go to other countries only to fulfill their family's needs. If the new government seriously works on the issues mentioned above, I hope the people who lost their lives during the Gen Z movement and their families will get justice to some extent. The lost lives cannot be revived but some comfort can be brought to those who are alive.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, January 23, 2026 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]

के बुढेसकाल साँच्चै दयनीय छ त ?

 

हामी सहकर्मीहरु बसेर गफ गर्ने सिलसिलामा एकदिन ‘सेवानिवृत्त’ जीवनको बारेमा कुरा चल्यो । कसैले भने, ‘रिटायर्ड भएपछि त के काम गर्नु र ? चूपचाप घरमा बस्यो, खायो, सुत्यो ।’ कसैले यसको प्रतिवाद गर्दै भने, ‘रिटायर्ड भएपछि त यो नियमित जागीरबाट छुटकारा पाइन्छ । अनि आफूले यतिन्जेल चाहेर पनि गर्न नसकेका कामहरु कुनै वाधा व्यवधानबेगर गर्ने नि !’ यसै क्रममा एकजनाले बडो घतलाग्दो कुरा सुनाए । उनले भने— ‘रिटायर्ड हुनु भनेको कामै नगरी घर बस्नु भनेको होइन नि ! यसको मतलब त री–टायर हो नि ! अथवा हाम्रो दैनिकीको पुरानो टायर फेरेर नयाँ टायर लगाउनु हो !’ उनका यस्ता कुराले मेरो मन छोयो । हो त नि, हाम्रो जीवनको एउटा कालखण्डको अन्त्यपछि शुरु भएको अर्को खण्ड हो सेवानिवृत्त जीवन । जुगाड गर्दै गर्दै धेरै समय चलेको गाडीको पुरानो टायर फेरेर नयाँ टायर हालेपछि गाडी जुन गतिमा कुद्न थाल्छ, कतिपय व्यक्तिहरु रिटायर्ड भएपछि पहिलेभन्दा सकृय भएर आफ्नो जीवनमा अगाडि बढ्छन् । आफ्ना अधूरा सपनाहरु पूरा गर्छन् र चर्चित पनि हुन्छन् ।

                जब जीवनको दोस्रो खण्डमा कुनै नयाँ काम गरेर त्यसैमा कीर्ति स्थापित गर्ने व्यक्तिका कुरा आउँछन् , म सबभन्दा पहिले फ्र्यान्सिस  म्याकोर्ट अर्थात् फ्र्याङ्क  म्याकोर्टलाई सम्झिन्छु । उनको जन्म न्यूयोर्कको ब्रुकलिन भन्ने ठाउँमा सन् १९३० मा भएको थियो । उनका मातापिता आयरल्याण्डबाट बसाइ सराइ गरी अमेरीका पुगेका थिए । पेशाले उनी माध्यमिक विद्यालयमा अध्यापन गर्ने एक साधारण शिक्षक थिए । न्यूयोर्कका विभिन्न ३३ वटा विद्यालयमा उनले सिर्जनात्मक लेखन विषय पढाए । उनको पढाउने शैलीलाई त्यो बेलाको शिक्षण प्रणाली मुताविक काम गर्ने व्यक्तिहरुले खासै रुचाएनन् । त्यसैले त उनी एक विद्यालयदेखि अर्को विद्यालयमा भौंतारिइरहे । वास्तवमा उनी तत्कालिन शिक्षा प्रणालीमा फिट हुन सकेनन् । यसको मुख्य कारण म्याकोर्टले आफ्नै शिक्षण पद्धति प्रतिपादन गरेका थिए । पाठ्यपुस्तकमा दिएका विषयवस्तुमा भन्दा उनको चाख विद्यार्थीहरुका अनुभवमा बढी थियो । त्यसैले उनी यिनै अनुभवका आधारमा आफ्ना पाठ्य सामग्री बनाइ अध्यापन गर्थे । उनले हुबहु आधिकारिक पाठ्यक्रम अनुसार नपढाए पनि विद्यार्थीहरु उनको शिक्षण शैलीबाट सन्तुष्ट थिए । फ्र्याङ्क  म्याकोर्ट आफ्नो पेशामा रहुन्जेल गुमनाम शिक्षक थिए । उनलाई सीमित परिवेशका मान्छेले बाहेक  कसैले चिन्दैनथ्यो ।

                तर जब उनी सेवानिवृत्त भए, उनले आफ्नो सिर्जनात्मक लेखाइको सीपलाई पुस्तक लेखनमा लगाए । उनकोे जीवनको दोस्रो काल खण्डले म्याकोर्टलाई विश्वप्रसिद्ध बनायो । उनको पहिलो पुस्तक ‘एन्जेलाज् यासेज्’ सन् १९९६ मा प्रकाशित भयो । यसबेला उनको उमेर ६६ वर्ष भैसकेको थियो । यसैगरी दोस्रो पुस्तक ‘इट इज: अ मेमोइर’ सन् १९९९ मा र तेस्रो पुस्तक ‘टिचर म्यान’ सन् २००५ मा प्रकाशित भएका थिए । उनको पुस्तक ‘एन्जेलाज् यासेज’ ले सन् १९९७ मा ‘पुलिट्जर प्राइज’ पाएको थियो । यो पुस्तकमा उनले आफ्नी आमा एन्जेला र आपूmहरुले आयरल्याण्डमा हुँदा भोगेको चरम गरिबीको बारेमा लेखेका छन् । म्याकोर्टको जन्म अमेरीकामा भएपनि उनी ४ वर्षका भएपछि उनीहरुको परिवार पुनः आयरल्याण्ड फर्केको थियो । त्यसैले उनको बाल्यकाल त्यहीँ बितेको थियो । यो पुस्तकमा आधारित चलचित्र पनि बनेको छ । यसरी आफ्नो जीवनको उत्तरार्धमा नै फ्र्याङ्क  म्याकोर्ट चर्चित भए । आज संसारले उनलाई एक प्रख्यात लेखकको रुपमा चिन्छ । उनको सन् २००९ मा भौतिक रुपमा मृत्यु भएता पनि उनी आफ्ना कृतिमा अमर छन् ।

                फ्र्याङ्क  म्याकोर्टजस्तै जीवनको उत्तरार्धमा चर्चित भएकी अर्की व्यक्तित्व हुन्— एना म्यारी रोबर्टसन् मोसेज अर्थात् ग्रयान्मा मोसेज । उनको जन्म सन् १८६० मा अमेरीकामा भएको थियो । उनी एक प्रख्यात चित्रकार थिइन् । आश्चर्यको कुरा, उनले आफ्नो पहिलो चित्र ७८ वर्षको उमेरमा बनाएकी थिइन् । ढल्किंदो उमेरमा नयाँ पेशाको थालनी गरे पनि उनी त्यो पेशामा सफल भइन् र नाम कमाइन् । अमेरीकाबाट प्रकाशित हुने ‘टाइम’ पत्रिकाले सन् १९५३ मा उनको बारेमा छापेपछि उनको प्रसिद्धि चुलिएको हो । त्यो समयमा विभिन्न टेलिभिजन कार्यक्रममा उनको चर्चा हुने गथ्र्यो ।

                वास्तवमा ग्रयान्मा मोसेजको पूर्वार्धको जीवन निकै संघर्षपूर्ण थियो । घरको आर्थिक अवस्था कमजोर भएका कारण उनी १२ वर्षको उमेरदेखि नै अर्काको घरमा काम गर्न बसेकी थिइन् । यस्तो काम गरेर उनले १५ वर्ष बिताइन् । आफ्नो विवाहपश्चात् उनी आफ्ना श्रीमान्सित खेतीबारीको काममा व्यस्त भइन् । उनको बाल्यकालदेखिको सपना भने चित्र बनाउनु नै थियो । घर व्यवहारको कामले ओझेलमा परेको त्यो सपनालाई मूर्त रुप दिन ग्रयान्मा मोसेले ७० को दशक पार गर्नु प¥यो । खुशीको कुरा, उनी यसमा पूर्ण रुपमा सफल भइन् । अहिले उनले बनाएका चित्रहरु संसारमा विभिन्न संग्रहालयहरुमा संग्रहित छन् । सन् १९६१ मा उनको मृत्यु भयो । त्यो बेला उनी १०१ वर्षकी थिइन् ।

                जीवनको पहिलो खण्डमा असफलता नै असफलताको सामना गर्ने कर्णेल हारल्याण्ड स्यान्डर्सले ६५ वर्षको उमेरपछि मात्र सफलताको स्वाद चाख्न पाए । आजको समयमा ‘केएफसी’ को नाम नसुन्ने मान्छे यो संसारमा विरलै होलान् । यसको पूरा नाम ‘केन्टुकी फ्राइड चिकन’ हो । यो खाद्य सामग्रीलाई स्थापित गराउन स्यान्डर्सले धेरै नै पापड बेल्नुपरेको थियो । उनले आफ्नो उर्वर समयभरि विभिन्न किसिमका नोकरीबाट अस्विकृति खेपे, व्यापारमा घाटा सहे, सधैँ उनलाई आर्थिक तङ्गी थियो । हुँदा हुँदा ६५ वर्षको उमेरमा उनी टाट पल्टिए । तैपनि उनले आफ्नो तारेको कुखुराको मासु पकाउने विधिलाई व्यापारीकरण गर्न छोडेनन् । यही क्रममा १,००९ पटकसम्म अस्विकृतिको सामना गरेपछि बल्ल एउटा रेस्टुरेन्टले उनको केएफसी रेसिपि किन्यो । त्यसपछि यो बिस्तारै चर्चित हुँदै गयो । आज संसारभर यो खाद्य पदार्थ प्रचलित छ । कर्णेल हारल्याण्ड स्यान्डर्सको जन्म सन् १८९० मा अमेरिकामा भएको थियो । उनी ९० वर्षको उमेरमा सन् १९८० मा यो संसारबाट बिदा भए पनि अमर छन् ।

                यहाँ वर्णन गरिएका तिनैजना व्यक्तिले उमेर भनेको खालि संख्या मात्र हो; यसले मानिसको सकृयता र सफलतालाई मापन गर्न सक्तैन भन्ने कुरा प्रमाणित गरेका छन् । यी केवल केहि उदाहरण मात्र हुन्  । हामीले खोजी गर्यौं भने अरु थुप्रै यस्ता मानिस भेटिन्छन् । हाम्रो समाजमा पनि जीवनपर्यन्त सकृय जीवनशैली अपनाउने व्यक्तिहरु छन् । तैपनि   अधिकांशमा के धारणा छ भने सेवानिवृत्त हुनु भनेको आफूमा भएको उर्वरता  समाप्त हुनु हो । यो कुरामा कुनै सत्यता छैन । एक किसिमले आफ्ना सम्पूर्ण जिम्मेवारीहरु पूरा गरिसकेको यो समय भनेको स्वतन्त्रताको उपभोग गर्ने समय हो । व्यवहारिक झन्झटमा फँसेर पूरा हुन नसकेका आफ्ना कतिपय अधूरा र अपूरा सपना, चाहना र इच्छा पूरा गर्ने समय हो । कसलाई के थाहा, लगनशील भएर  आफूलाई मन पर्ने काम निरन्तर गरिरहँदा हामीमध्ये पनि कोही फ्र्याङ्क  म्याकोर्ट, ग्रयान्मा मोसे अथवा हारल्याण्ड स्यान्डर्सजस्तै विश्वभरि प्रसिद्ध भइ पो हाल्छौँ कि ? उनीहरुको स्तरको सफलता हासिल गर्न नसके पनि हामी आत्मसन्तुष्टि र आत्मविश्वासका साथ आफ्नो उत्तरार्धको जीवन व्यतीत गर्न भने पक्कै सक्छौँ ।

 (जेष्ठ नागरिक द्वैमासिक पत्रिकाको आश्विन - कार्तिक २०८२ अंकमा प्रकाशित) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]