I have the guts and plans to lead this country: Gagan Thapa [Interview]

Gagan Kumar Thapa, who was elected General Secretary by the 14th General Convention of Nepali Congress (NC), has two challenges at the moment – winning the upcoming election and making his party victorious. In the 2017 election also, Thapa had reached most of the districts as part of the party’s election campaigning. He has a compulsion of reaching most of the districts this time around too. Party meetings, efforts to pacify disgruntled leaders, devising election agendas, and interaction with media is keeping him busy. Thapa is contesting the November 20 election from the Kathmandu-4 constituency. Thapa, who was elected from the constituency in 2013 and 2017, is targeting a hat-trick of wins and become the executive head of the country. Chandra Shekhar Adhikari of Himal Press talked to Thapa on the NC’s strategy for the election, preparation to face his voters, and homework to become the next executive head of the country. Excerpts:

How are the preparations for the election going on?

I had reached most of the districts during the 2017 election campaign. Now that I have been elected as the general secretary, there is a need to make election campaigning more effective. I will try to participate in campaigning in as many districts as possible. I am also serious about party management, publicity and mobilization of cadres.

There is a need to allocate more time for the party and the ruling coalition. I am also giving adequate time to my constituency. Since the campaigning period will be shorter this time, I may not be able to participate in campaigning much. But I will try to reach all voters.

How have you found the constituency where you were victorious twice?

I never think it will be easy in the election. This time also I have not taken it that way. Voters will have the final say. The most a candidate can do is take his message to the voters. In the past, I solicited votes to work as a member of the parliament. The voters believed in me and elected me. I didn’t let their votes go to waste. I performed my role satisfactorily in the parliament.

Voters of this constituency have evaluated my performance as the Minister of Health and Population. These voters are not new to me. They have been seeing me for the past 10 years. So, this is not a new area for me. But I will have a new responsibility now. I will tell my voters I will have a new responsibility now. I am the general secretary of my party and I am preparing to lead the government. That is why the people of my constituency need to re-elect me.

How will you tell voters about your new responsibility?

I will first brief them about the work that I have done. I proudly say I have managed to show my capability while I was the health minister. I have the list of the work that I did.

I have always presented myself as a strong leader. Based on this experience, I will tell people we should be led by young leaders, not old leadership. Leaders of different generations are waiting for their turn in all the political parties. I will try to take Nepali politics out of this. I am hopeful that voters will do justice and re-elect me to take Nepali politics out of the grip of the old leadership. I don’t know whether I will be successful. But I will discuss with voters how I intend to do that.

Will you get the support and cooperation of your party?

I will get the support and cooperation of everyone who wants change. For NC to go to the polls alone, there was a need to change the leadership and add around 1.5 million supporters which was not possible. Therefore we are heading to the polls by forming a coalition.

Not only in NC, there is establishment faction in every political party that doesn’t want to change. And there is one group that says change is inevitable, makes efforts to bring about change but fails. There is also a small group with the establishment faction which is seeking a complete transformation but failing. It, however, is continuing its efforts. I am a part of that group. Therefore, I am always making efforts for positive transformation. But I don’t want to take the path taken by late Girija Prasad Koirala in 1991. I am making efforts to bring change through reforms.

Do you mean to say you will become Prime Minister by winning from Kathmandu-4?

Definitely. I am capable of taking leadership. I am confident that I can do better than the current leadership. Take a look at the senior leaders of NC, Maoist and UML. All of them have the experience of leading this country. I discharged the responsibility of the health minister for a short period only. They may not need to prepare, but I need to. I will go before the voters after needful preparation only. How long will we keep telling people to elect us to the House of Representatives? How will we answer if voters say isn’t it time we got a new leadership? The leaders of new generation should now aim to move forward for at least two terms. Only then one will feel that he has done something for the country. Whether our aim will be fulfilled will depend on the decision of voters and the role we play after getting elected.

Probably, I am the only one who is making preparations to lead the country for the next five years. Leaders hardly do this. Maybe those, who have already become prime minsiter, do not need to prepare.

How can voters believe you as the next prime minister?

Voters will trust me based on my age, experience and preparation. People know I am not afraid to contest for leadership. I have contested with my father-in-law for the post of party general secretary. I am in the team of Dr Shekhar Koirala. Probably, I am the only one who is making preparations to lead the country for the next five years. Leaders hardly do this. Maybe those, who have already become prime minsiter, do not need to prepare. The next 10 years will determine the fate of the nation and its people. I am hopeful that voters will trust me on the basis of my preparation. I will solicit their voters for the coming two terms only.

Why did you fix the 10-year limit?

In the next 10 years, we will see people more qualified than us. There are a few already. We need to leave the field for them. That is why I fixed this 10-year limit. Politics doesn’t mean always sticking to the post. You need to leave your position after a certain time. We didn’t get to learn this from our seniors. But we need to make a start. If I failed to do anything in the next two terms, I cannot do anything regardless of how long I occupy the position. That is why I am targeting the executive post in this term.

What will be your plans for the next five years?

Thousands of candidates are in the election race. All of them look more or less the same. Some of the candidates are happy and seem to be enjoying because they are benefiting from this system. There are some who are saying transformation is needed but are confused.

The third is the group that is not satisfied despite being in the political mainstream. They are experiencing defeat even after winning. Still, they are continuing the fight. I am amongst them. I am trying to explain this to my voters clearly. I am trying to deliver the best. I was an active member of parliament. Now, I want to take the driving seat.

I didn’t stop questioning even though my party was leading the government. I protested the government’s activities, supported them and gave needful suggestions. I don’t want to be elected to perform the same role again. Since the previous generation is not taking rest, we need to grab power from them. I am seeking the support of voters for the same. When my daughters grow up, I want to see them tell the world that they are citizens of a prosperous country, not an underdeveloped one. My efforts will be to materialize it. I will create an environment so that my daughters can proudly say their father was involved in politics. I won’t stay in the leadership for long. I will be there for 10 years only.

If your aim is to displace the previous generation, why you couldn’t do that in the party general convention itself?

Many things happened in the general convention. We were about to change the leadership but failed. Though there were few problems, leaders of our generation could become party general secretaries. I have been elected to the parliament twice. I have also performed responsibility as the minister. I now have both the guts and plans to become the prime minister. I can perform way better than what people are saying. Since I have already made the decision, I won’t back down now. I am going forward with my plan.

Won’t those in leadership for five decades play foul when you are talking about displacing the leadership?

They may make attempts but I will stand strong. My voters have understood this. Since I am planning to take the executive position, there can be some unnatural moves. I will move forward cautiously. The voters of Kathmandu-4 have shown a huge trust in me. I am confident that they will elect me to govern this country. I will reach the doorsteps of my voters with my plans to develop this country.

Have you talked to your close ones about it?

Yes, I have. I am encouraged by their enthusiasm. They have faith in me, and have assured me of their support. I won’t let this die. I will be cautious of foul players, and keep trying to take my voters into confidence.

The work done by the government with the majority has made it clear that the nation will collapse if the NC is not strong. Otherwise, our party, which is in minority, won’t have got the opportunity to hold this election.

There were rumors that you tried to leave the Kathmandu-4 constituency. What do you say?

Rumors are only natural because I was recommended by a few districts. As the Sarlahi-4 committee had recommended me as its sole candidate, the rumors were natural. Also, the people of Sarlahi-4 were in Kathmandu requesting me to contest the election from their constituency.

But since I was elected from Kathmandu-4 twice and even became minister, I was against changing the constituency. I know the election in Sarlahi-4 would have been much easier compared to Kathmandu-4. Locals of Sarlahi-4 stayed in Kathmandu until my candidacy was finalized in Kathmandu-4. They kept requesting me to contest from their area. I have huge respect for them and I am thankful to them.

I decided against changing the constituency as I felt I need to lead this country by getting elected from the constituency from where I started my journey in the parliament. My heart didn’t allow me to leave the constituency that gave me the strength to fight.

Some leaders needed for the country didn’t get ticket to contest the election. How do you feel?

Only I and my close friends know how disappointed I am. If the party had the leadership that we all wanted, the ticket distribution would have been far better. We could have got more seats from the coalition. Many friends won’t have been left out. I could do justice to dozens of friends. New faces would have got the opportunity to contest. Still, we could get partial success. But I will continue my efforts. The transformation that I am talking about will make things a bit easier. I am continuously making efforts.

What are your election slogans?

Instead of devising slogans, my efforts will be on informing my voters about the works that I did and the efforts that I made. There are only a few voters who don’t know me. Therefore, our efforts will be on telling people what I will do after I am elected. We believe in deeds, not slogans. Since we are talking about changing the leadership, the focus is on ways to strengthen the party and develop the country.

I have already begun discussions with voters. We cannot reach the doorsteps of voters now because of the code of conduct of the Election Commission. To begin with, we will collect queries and suggestions from voters through social media outlets.

The work done by the government with the majority has made it clear that the nation will collapse if the NC is not strong. Otherwise, our party, which is in minority, won’t have got the opportunity to hold this election. This alone proves how important NC’s role is in the country.

Has the problem of floods and inundation in Kapan area taken the back seat as you prepare to become the next prime minister? Or is it impossible to find a solution to the problem?

Yes, there is the problem of floods and inundation in Kapan area. The problem emerged after gravel was dumped on an intermittent river to make a road. The river had already gone when I started my political career in this constituency. I made a lot of effort to address the problem but failed. The government has invested more than a billion rupees to solve the problem. But nothing is happening. Now, I will find a sustainable solution after conducting needful studies. This is not my election slogan, but a responsibility. I will find a solution to the problem.

I have already taken initiative for the same. Kapal Inundation Control Project has been approved by the government. We have started needful studies because government offices cannot address the problem. We cannot bring the river back now.

Researchers of Tribhuvan University and Kathmandu University are studying the practices of foreign countries. Foreign experts are also involved. This will find a long-term solution to the problem.