Zig when others zag
Tulu tulu herera, Nepal khulla hudaina!
Ghaam taapi basera. Nepal khulla hudaina!
(Translated: Sitting idle won’t affect the shutdown…Basking in the sun won’t affect the shutdown)
On a warm Monday morning this week, when the nation was just waking up to the strike called by 33 agitating parties, a group of youths clad in white T-shirts and carrying Nepali flags were already out on the streets of Kathmandu, sloganeering these lines. Intent on defying the shutdown, they were out to caution the public about the pitfalls of inaction against the growing banda culture. These youths, however, do not belong to any traditional political party or organisation. They are part of a new movement that has recently taken the city by surprise.
In case you haven’t noticed, Kathmanduites have suddenly started talking about dogs, smileys and rickshaws these days. No, this is not a Kukur Tihar hangover! And it has nothing to do with a smiley revolution or rickshaw-pulling per se. All this is a part of a unique election campaign being run by a group of youths who call themselves Bibeksheel Nepali—translating to ‘sensible Nepalis’.
Bibeksheel Nepali brings together several young educated citizens who say they are tired of the way the current political system functions. But instead of wasting time blaming
leaders for their inadequacies, they want to join politics and do away
with the current political framework that discourages capable persons from taking up leadership roles. By doing so, they aim to shake the age-old dominance of those elite parties that have proven their incompetence time and again.
“We are a fresh alternative to the bandwagon of old, failed and corrupt leaders that people have gotten fed up with,” says Ujwal Thapa, a 36-year-old independent candidate and chairman of Bibeksheel.
Thapa and three others from Bibeksheel are independently running for elections from Kathmandu’s hotly contested constituencies: Kathmandu-1, 4, 5 and 8. They are up against political bigwigs like Nara Hari Acharya and Gagan Thapa of Nepali Congress, Ishwor Pokharel of CPN-UML, Renu Dahal, daughter of the Unified Maoist chief, and Suprabha Ghimire, another independent candidate. Despite the challenges, though, the Bibeksheel candidates look determined to stand their ground, if not win, and say they believe people will vote for them because, unlike the others, they are ‘doers’ and not talkers.
All of the four candidates from Bibeksheel hail from impressive entrepreneurial and educational backgrounds. In the past, they have also played active roles in organising popular social campaigns like Occupy Baluwatar, Entrepreneurs for Nepal, Nepal Unites and Die Banda Die, to name a few. Before their election campaign began in earnest, they’d travelled all over Nepal on foot to collect people’s views and aspirations. It was in Lumbini that they’d first congregated to start their political journey. A year into politics, and they are already stealing a big chunk of the limelight previously reserved for influential political stalwarts in Kathmandu.
One of the many reasons behind their successful election campaigning has been the vigourous use of technology. This tech-savvy bunch makes creative use of Facebook, Twitter, texts and emails in their campaigning. Unlike the existing norm of clandestine election fundraising, they also periodically post details of received donations and campaign expenses on their website and Facebook page.
“Since we do not have adequate funds, social media has been very effective in getting our message across to our target audience.” says Govinda Narayan Timilsina, another independent candidate from Bibeksheel, who is running from Kathmandu-1.
An additionally interesting aspect of their campaign is their election symbol: the dog. This, they say, is meant to convey to voters that Bibeksheel leaders will serve them faithfully and chase away corrupt and incompetent leaders. On the day of Kukur Tihar, Bibeksheel candidates organised a Kukur Jatra at Basantapur and cleverly used the occasion to make their two-page manifesto public. And they’ve also used a smiley as their movement symbol for a simple reason: they want to see all Nepalis smiling in the future.
Of course, the young candidates haven’t given up entirely on traditional campaigning means, but have tweaked them slightly. During their door-to-door campaigns, for instance, the candidates tour their constituencies on rickshaws laden with Nepali flags (which they’ve dubbed the People’s Pajero) and parade around a symbolic fat and corrupt politician. This simple but witty act effectively sends a powerful message to the voters—and certainly draws the attention of passersby—as do catchy slogans like “If not now, when? If not us, who?” and “My country, my responsibility.”
For now, it’s quite difficult to tell whether or not such novel campaigning methods have actually helped them sway undecided votes in their favour; we will have to wait to find out. But their quirky approach has definitely struck a chord with the locals in their constituencies, evident from the number of smiles and hugs they have received from the people they’ve visited so far. The fact that they have made such an impact in the lead-up to the elections could very well be an indication that it is time for the dawn of a new era in politics in Nepal. Whether it’s a win or a loss this time, Bibeksheel will have already served its purpose by November 19—to show that Nepalis need no longer pander to the old players, and could, if they wish, take their chances on a new generation of leaders.
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