Keeping Bhutan safe

June 26, 2021Posted inGeneral1 Comment
A 72-hour lockdown has been imposed on Phuentsholing’s “Megazone 2”. This is terrible news, as it has been only a few days since a 62-day lockdown that all of Phuentsholing has had to endure was being gradually lifted. Imagine the relief when residents of Phuentsholing were informed that the lockdown was being lifted after they had been confined to their homes for two whole months. Now imagine their anguish when residents of the core area of Phuentsholing were informed that they will have to undergo another lockdown. This is the nature of the covid virus. It spreads insidiously and…

Better late than never

April 14, 2019Posted inGeneral
A bit of good news that the media covered last week caught my attention. Kuensel reported that, “the prime minister, cabinet ministers, opposition leader, national council chairperson, the chief justice of the supreme court, ACC chairperson, attorney general and the auditor general together surrendered 21 subsidised cylinders”. Kuensel’s coverage included two photographs of our leaders trading in gas cylinders “… for others who cannot afford the non-subsidised LPG.” The photo-op was a part of “Our Gyenkhu”, the government’s initiative to encourage citizens to buy non-subsidized gas. I applaud this initiative, and join the government in encouraging the use of…

Enough entertainment

April 12, 2019Posted inGeneral3 Comments
The Royal Audit Authority seems to have recently submitted their report on hospitality and entertainment expenses to the government. Their findings have caused widespread alarm in the country. I have not responded to the report for a simple reason: I have not yet received a copy of the report. I have not seen it, and I don’t know if they expect a response from me. The media, on the other hand, have already obtained (or were given) copies of the report. And they have run with it. Kuensel alone has written six pieces on the RAA’s findings and has…

A birthday greeting

February 21, 2013Posted inGeneral
On the joyous occasion of His Majesty the King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk’s 33rd birth anniversary, the People’s Democratic Party joins the nation in offering our deepest respects, heartfelt felicitations and prayers for His Majesty’s long life and a long prosperous reign. Long Live the Druk Gyalpo! Bhutan has been blessed with a succession of enlightened monarchs – selfless and benevolent kings who have always placed the interest of the nation above all else. They have ensured the peace, security and stability of our country; they have bestowed liberty, justice and happiness on our people. Bhutan continues to be…

Happy Losar!

February 11, 2013Posted inGeneral5 Comments
I am guilty. My last post was on November 23. That means that I have not updated my blog for about two and half months – 79 days to be exact. That’s a long break. I took the break to collect my thoughts. I also took the break to focus on party matters – to consult and work more closely with my PDP colleagues in the lead-up to this year’s elections. I’m happy to report that, so far, our journey to the 2013 elctions is proceeding well. So far, so good. I have been very fortunate that my blog…

Amazing social media

September 20, 2012Posted inGeneral11 Comments
Social media is amazing. Click on a few buttons, like a page, follow a friend, and, voila!, you know everything that's going on around you. To politicians, that knowledge is invaluable. It allows them to hear the people, to listen to them, to feel their pulse. But social media has an even bigger gift for politicians. It facilitates communication. It allows politicians to interact continuously with people, easily and directly. Yes, social media is amazing. That's why I, as a politician, am active on Twitter and Facebook. That's also why I'm on Youtube and Bambuser and Linkedin and Instagram.…

Observing anticorruption day

December 11, 2011Posted inGeneral17 Comments
Here's how I observed International Anticorruption Day yesterday: One, I went through Transparency International’s Corruption Perception index report for 2011. Bhutan is rated 5.7 (10 means perceived to be very clean; 0 means very corrupt) and is ranked a decent 38 out of the 182 countries and territories that were studied. Bhutan’s rating of 5.7 remains unchanged from the 2010 corruption perception levels. Not bad, but we can, and must, do better. Two, I tuned in to see BBS’s live debate on the topic “Is Bhutan doing enough in fighting corruption?” The debate, which was organised jointly with IMS,…

On tour

November 20, 2011Posted inGeneral10 Comments
Dear friends, I'm continuing my tour to the dzongkhags - to congratulate the new local governments, to report on the work of the opposition party, and to discuss what we should focus on during the remainder of our term. I'm in Dagana. Today, after we visit the Impressive Daga Tashi yangtse Dzong, we go to Dagapela, and from there we trek to Lhamoizingkha. I'm looking forward to visiting this part of our country before they become accessible by car. I haven't been able to get my laptop online. That's why I haven't posted anything new. But I can access…

Sorry!

August 24, 2011Posted inGeneral1 Comment
I have not been able to update this blog – not because I’ve been busy touring our country, but because the data card I use to connect my laptop to the Internet is broken. So while I’ve been able to post updates on Twitter and on Facebook using my cell phone, I have not been able to work on my blog. I am sorry. We are now back in Trongsa, our first stop on the tour. From here we had traveled to Bumthang and then on to Lhuntse, Mongar, Trashiyangtse, Trashigang, Samdrup Jongkhar, Sarpang and Zhemgang. Tomorrow we head…

Pension benefits

January 19, 2011Posted inGeneral
We talked about pensions two years ago. First, we voiced concern that the NPPF pension scheme was sustainable for only 30 years. Then, we discussed the merits of a defined-contribution plan over the existing defined-benefit plan. And then, we expressed alarm that the government was interfering in how our pension scheme was being run. Let’s keep talking about pensions. There’s good news. And there’s bad news. The good news is that, despite increased competition in the financial sector, NPPF seems to be performing well. In the last year, the membership base has increased by 5.4%, from 40,222 to 42,393…

Big picture – 10

January 16, 2011Posted inGeneral25 Comments
We haven’t done this for a while. The first person to get the big picture wins a copy of “Treasures of the Thunder Dragon: A Portrait of Bhutan”.

Australia floods

January 14, 2011Posted inGeneral
I just got off the phone with Colin McCowan, popularly known as “Mister Col” by Bhutanese studying in Brisbane, Australia. Col says that he’s in touch with all 25 Bhutanese students in the Brisbane area. And that all of them and their families are safe. The floods have wrecked unimaginable damage in Queensland. So I’m grateful that our students and their families – all 60 of them – are safe and sound. Mister Col: thank you for taking care of our students.

Paraprosdokian sentences

December 29, 2010Posted inGeneral

A friend sent me this. Enjoy ….
A paraprosdokian is a figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected in a way that causes the reader or listener to re-frame or re-interpret the first part. It is frequently used for humorous or dramatic effect. For this reason, it is extremely popular among comedians and satirists.

  • I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.
  • Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.
  • I want to die peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming and yelling like the passengers in his car.
  • Going to church doesn’t make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.
  • The last thing I want to do is hurt you. But it’s still on the list.

Royal Body Guards

December 27, 2010Posted inGeneral
The Royal Body Guards are celebrating their golden jubilee today. The banner, featuring RBG’s famous “Gho Company”, congratulates and thanks the commandant, officers and all ranks of the RBG, past and present, for fifty years of dedicated service to the tsa-wa-sum. RBG’s announcement on this important day follows: Royal Body Guards was raised on 27th December 1960 to undertake the security responsibilities of His Majesty the Third King. It then just consisted of one Company of 120 men including officers under the Command of 2nd Lt. Tshering Nidup who was later promoted to the rank of Colonel and had…

Quiz – 2

December 23, 2010Posted inGeneral25 Comments
Our first quiz generated a good deal of interest. So, naturally, I've decided to make quizzes a regular feature here. I hope you agree. Please participate. And please contribute questions. Here's the question: What does HPM stand for?