Powerful lobby?
Our government has started to campaign for non-permanent membership of the UN Security Council. Is this a good idea? Take the poll that asks: “Should Bhutan lobby to join the UN Security Council?”
During the last session of the Parliament I asked the prime minister to explain what Mckinsey were doing that couldn’t be done by our own civil servants. Subsequently, I ran a poll that asked you “Are civil servants impressed with McKinsey’s work?”
Of the 569 who took the poll, 408 (or 72%) replied with a emphatic “No!” while only 72 (or 12%) said “Yes!” The others (16%) answered “I don’t know.”
Our poll results are straightforward: An overwhelming majority of you are not impressed with McKinsey’s performance. That is terrible, especially if, as I suspect, many of you who took the poll are civil servants.
But there’s another side to the story. Last Sunday, Bhutan Times ran a story in which many people – civil servants, ministers and counterparts – went on record to endorse the good work that McKinsey and Company were doing in our country. That is good news.
So are McKinsey doing a good job? The verdict is still out.
An excellent piece of investigative journalism, about Bhutan’s role in the Indian lottery scam, by Business Bhutan’s Tenzing Lamsang, that screams for answers.
Testing times
The Election Commission of Bhutan is correct in cautioning the government that the local government elections would be incomplete and unconstitutional if those elections were conducted without first finalizing the yenlag thromdes (satellite towns).
Yenlag thromdes have still not been identified for the Dzongkhags. So holding the local government elections now would, as ECB maintains, result in incomplete Dzongkhag Tshogdus, and risk violating Article 21 Section 9 of the Constitution according to which:
The Dzongkhag Tshogdu shall comprise:
(a) The Gup and Mangmi as the two elected representatives from each Gewog;
(b) One elected representative from that Dzongkhag Thromde; and
(c) One elected representative from Dzongkhag Yenlag Thromdes.
Local government elections have already been seriously delayed. As such, development work at the gewogs have suffered. And more importantly, two and a half years after the first general elections, our people continue to be deprived of the main benefit of the democratic process which is to elect and to hold to account their local leaders.
Yes, local government elections must be conducted as soon as possible. But the local governments so elected must be complete and must conform to the laws, especially the Constitution.
So I welcome the chief election commissioner’s announcement that the local government elections “could happen in the spring of 2011”. In the meantime, the government must finalise a complete proposal for yenlag thromdes in every dzongkag, and submit it to the next session of the Parliament scheduled for November this year.
And, one more thing: the government must desist from advocating the idea that certain parts of the Constitution do not have to be implemented immediately. The Constitution “is the Supreme Law of the State” (Article 1 Section 9), and, as such, it must be implemented immediately and in its entirety. Anything less is disrespectful to the Constitution and is dangerous for democracy.
In this regard, the government would be well advised to withdraw its statement, justifying local government elections without yenlag thromdes, that:
… the decision on whether all the conditions listed in the Constitution should be established immediately, regardless of the ground realities, should be left to the parliament and government
Photo credit: BBS
The banner features Kilu students singing Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World” during Radio Valley’s second food festival at Thimphu’s clock tower square yesterday.
Wanted: Relief Fund
Yesterday, we marked the first anniversary of the 21st September earthquake. It gave us reason to recall the widespread destruction that the earthquake unleashed on the Eastern parts of our country, and the untold sufferings that our people had to endure.
It also gave us reason to celebrate the indomitable spirit of the Bhutanese people. During the past year, thousands of homes and countless lives have been rebuilt, as people from all walks of life – famers, civil servants, the clergy, the business community, armed forces, students, and civil society – throughout our kingdom, came together and joined the massive relief efforts that were initiated and personally led by His Majesty the King.
To be sure, a lot of work still remains to be done. A majority of the damaged houses are still under reconstruction. And His Majesty’s Peoples’ Project is still on a war footing helping earthquake victims rebuild their lives.
So, yesterday, as a member of parliament, I had reason to be concerned. It’s already been a year since the earthquake, and relief works continue. Plus nobody knows when the next big natural calamity will strike. Yet we, MPs, have not yet established the Relief Fund, which according to Article 14 Section 12 of the Constitution:
Parliament shall establish a relief fund and the Druk Gyalpo shall have the prerogative to use this fund for urgent and unforeseen humanitarian relief.
The ruling party and the government must act immediately to establish the relief fund. Otherwise, the opposition party may feel compelled to introduce a private bill to establish the important fund.
I’m back. And it feels good to be back home.
My broken jaw has been corrected by way of a metal plate that now holds the fracture in place. But my jaws have also been wired shut to allow the damaged bones to heal properly. So till the wires come off – which will be in about five weeks – I’ll be speaking through clenched teeth. And subsisting on a full liquid diet.
I’m grateful for the many emails and messages that I received during the last two weeks. Your good wishes, support and prayers have helped me recover from that nasty biking accident quickly and remarkably well.
I’m back. And I thank you very much.
Bathpalathang
I’m impressed at the government’s readiness to abide by the law. Bhutan Today (whose website has been woefully inadequate) had recently reported that:
The prime minister has ordered the information and communication ministry to pay about Nu 2.3 million in penalty for not following the environmental impact assessment (EIA) procedures in the construction of the Bathpalathang airstrip in Bumthang.
But I’m not impressed at the prime minister’s cavalier disregard for the basic principles of accountability when he added that:
… the fine will have to be levied even if it means paying from one pocket to another.
I wonder what the Royal Audit Authority will have to say to that.
Incidentally, last week, in Bumthang, I visited the Bathpalathang airstrip site. The construction there seems to have already resumed. I am impressed.
At Pelela
Twenty-five bikers took part in the inaugural Tour of the Dragon yesterday.
The Dragon, a one-day bicycle ride from Bumthang to Thimphu, crosses 4 passes, all of them over 3,000 meters, and covers 168 kilometers through five dzongkhags. The breathtaking route offers an elevation gain of 4,000 meters, a whopping half of which is on the final ascent from Wangdiphodrang bridge to Dochula.
The Tour of the Dragon must be one of the more beautiful one-day bike rides in the world. It’s probably one of the most difficult ones too.
The official records are not yet out, but more than half of the participants completed yesterday’s ride. Ugen Yozer rode in first. Rinzin Norbu second. And HRH Prince Jigyel Ugyen Wangchuck, the inspiration of the Tour, third.
As everyone knows, virtually any bike race worth its salt will feature a casualty. And so it was with the inaugural Tour of the Dragon.
A biker came barreling down to Trongsa, 68 km from the start of the race. He looked left then right at the small group of spectators, ostensibly to see if any of them planned to cross the road. But what the fool didn’t see was a bump on the road. That bump threw him off. And he landed squarely on his jaw.
The medical team stitched him up and attended to his bruises. And about an hour and a half later the fool rejoined the race.
I was that crazy fool.
The Tour of the Dragon will take place on the first Saturday of every September.
Photo credit: Karma Loday, CEO, Yangphel Travel
Tshering Tobgay is a Member of Parliament representing Sombaykha Constitutency in Haa. He is the Leader of the Opposition Party in the National Assembly of Bhutan.
Is ACC taking too long to start investigating the Gyelpozhing land case?
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