Youths are powerful and influential people in politics and development. However, the involvement of youths in Nepali Politics is less desirable. Even most of those who view politics in a positive light are disenchanted to see the power games of political parties.

Youths have played decisive role in the history of Nepali politics. The anti-Rana movement and the people’s movements of 1990 and 2006/07 wouldn’t be successful without the sacrifices by the young generation.

According to the National Census of 2011, youths constitute 40.3 percent of the total population. The majority of this population does not have favourable opinion about politics and consider it is as “a dirty game.” Youths do not show interest in politics and blame the political leaders for misruling the country. The young people show little concern towards the  formation and dissolution of governments, do not care what role international powers are playing in domestic politics, or criticise how  foreign aids are being used to fill the pockets of  employees at NGOs and INGOs. The commitments of youths to nationalism are confined to the walls of Facebook and Twitter only.

All youths must internalise a proactive attitude because they are the nation’s ultimate beacon of hope.

Youths appear to have been lured too much into materialistic aspects of the society. Many high school students are living in a world of fantasy. It is a matter of surprise and disappointment that students fail to answer the simplest questions not only about contemporary politics but also about day to day realities.

There is a perception that politics is not for gentle and educated people and many fear to take up politics as their career. For youths, politics is one of the last career options.

Even those youths who show interest in politics engage in jingoism, evolve into brainwashed sheep, and lean towards one or the other ruling party where his/her personal interests are best served.

The leaders of political parties have a tendency not to encourage or nurture intellectual young people to play a role in politics. The cognitive capacity of such youths is blunted by monetary and materialistic promises. Political temptation, blackmails, and abusive use of youth energy has ruined the prospect for many promising youths. There are many young people who are ready to compromise their dignity and integrity for trivial personal advantage. This reminds me of Duke Ding of Lu State in ancient China who had surrendered his nationality to a neighbouring ruler in exchange for 80 beautiful women and 124 horses.

Student political wings in Nepal are deviating youths from their ideological orientation. Student and youth wings have been exploited as tools to reinforce the position of political parties in different educational institutions.

Universities and colleges have been politicised and affected by the activities of unscrupulous youths who engage in hampering regular classes and violating others’ right to education. This is the major reason why the government institutions are making sluggish improvement though they have enough access to resources in comparison to private colleges. Student political wings get radicalised to gain popularity for the sake of winning election. Political parties provide huge financial assistance to their sister organisations to help them organise disruptive activities.

Nepali youth are engaged in politics of slander and defamation of other political parties and leaders. This is not a good practice in democracy. Use of social networking sites in trolling leaders is rampant. Where does this lead us? We could use these social forums to conduct political debates and discussions. It is important for all the rational minded youths to beware of such activities. Since decades, we have seen that politics is being developed as a tool for strengthening an evil network to get personal or partisan interests served. Instead of believing in meritocracy, youths today believe in blessings, nepotism, and favoritism.

 The same people are on the forefront of Nepali politics. These limited numbers of politicians have their own vested interest and power-sharing mechanism to help them survive. They have failed to give even the most basic services and inclusive representation. Judiciary system has been polluted, education system has become obsolete, people are being fleeced with exorbitant prices, air quality is deteriorating, road conditions are pitiful and the whole population is in a state of desperation.

Many are aware of these facts. However, we are not in a position to make any difference. Youths have a habit of blindly following their leaders for whatsoever stand they take in political issues. We fail to criticise our leaders for the fear that our names might get blacklisted resulting in a setback to our political career. These weaknesses of youths have been well identified by the politicians who use it against us. Unless we come out of this stereotype our nation is reaching nowhere.

Nepal is sinking deeper and deeper into the ocean of overwhelming problems and difficulties. Let’s hope that the current left coalition can come up with an effective leadership in using ideas of youths to formulate developmental plans and policies.

A new elected leadership is on the helm for the next five years. The young people must learn lessons from them and sharpen themselves to become competent enough to supersede the exhausted minds in the next election.

The nation’s future lies in our hands. We, the youths, should start equipping ourselves with research based knowledge and soak in the values of ethical life, rule of laws and political philosophies. All of us have the potential to lead the nation in the future.

Wagley is a student of BALLB at Kathmandu School of Law