Kathmandu, May 12: During the election, persistent critics labeled the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) lacking a traditional “ism”. Critics argued the party lacked a traditional political compass, making it difficult for the average citizen to find a long-term sense of belonging within the movement. However, the party’s performance in government has begun to provide a definitive answer to those doubts. By prioritizing specialized knowledge over partisan rhetoric, they have introduced a functional model of technocratic governance to Nepal.
However, as the RSP took its seat at the table, those doubts began to collide with a new reality. From hand-picking experts for cabinet positions to maintaining a zero-tolerance policy toward corruption and fraud, this movement has met every criteria of a “baby-phased” technocratic government. By prioritizing specialized knowledge over the usual partisan theater, they have introduced something foreign to the Nepali landscape: functional technocratic governance.
The word “technocracy” in it’s first instance feels something out of a sci-fi novel cold, robotic, and detached. Therefore, in order to understand the meaning of, we should understand who is a technocrat? Etymologically, the word technocrat is derived from tekhne which means skill or craft and kratos means power. Therefore a technocrat is an individual that establishes a government run by technical experts based on their own knowledge instead of public opinion.
There is a myth that to be a good leader you need to be charismatic and emotional. We should look at it differently. Putting an expert in charge is not about losing the touch it is about respecting people enough to put someone in charge who can actually fix the problems.
For a time, we have been hearing big promises from politicians that do not improve our daily lives. We have had a lot of speeches, but the roads are still bad and the lines at the government offices are still long. What we are seeing now is a push for a system where expertise’s not just an idea but a reality. It is a shift where being efficient is not just a goal but something that happens, making life easier for people.
When you put a specialist in charge of making policies the focus shifts from what we believe into what works. Consider the problem of delays in government offices in Nepal. A traditional politician might promise to help the poor. A technocrat looks at the system and finds the problems.
For example, the recent efforts to make services like National IDs easier to get or the push for using data to improve healthcare are not just small changes. When a government office works properly it gives people back their time. It reduces the need for bribery and the frustration of waiting. When a specialist designs a healthcare system it means people do not have to spend all their money on medical bills.
Critics might still say that we need an ideology, but they are missing the point. Maybe the goal is not to follow a theory but to have a government that actually works.
In a country like Nepal, where we have dealt with many broken promises what could be more important, than having a functional government. The sense of belonging that people crave does not have to come from sharing the beliefs it can come from living in a country that respects their time and money. If RSP can show that using expertise leads to roads and shorter lines, they will not need a traditional ideology. They will have something more powerful: a track record of success.
Maybe the “vision” isn’t a thick manifesto of old-school politics. Maybe the vision is just a government that actually works. And in a country like ours, what could be more human than that? #Nepal
[Pathak is the student of law at Kathmandu School of Law].
