Kathmandu, October 11
CPN-UML chair KP Sharma Oli has said generational change in political parties and state institutions is a natural process, but stressed that leadership must be transferred through established methods and procedures.
Addressing a gathering of party leaders and cadres under the UML’s Mission Party Awakening Campaign on Sunday, Oli urged the younger generation to develop their skills and capabilities rather than demand leadership positions outright.
He accused some people of trying to create new conflicts and divisions in society in the name of generational change.
“In the past, attempts were made to divide people along the lines of caste, religion and geography. Now that they have failed to do so, they are trying to disrupt society by creating conflict between fathers and sons, and grandfathers and grandchildren,” Oli said.
Responding to growing pressure from younger leaders for older generations to make way, Oli said leadership transition was inevitable but required preparation and gradual transfer of responsibilities.
“Transfer and generational change are natural processes. They happen whether we want them to or not. But one cannot become a professor overnight. One has to start as a lecturer,” he said. “The new generation must be made capable and competent, and responsibilities must be handed over gradually. That takes some time.”
Oli also compared his own political experience with the present context, arguing that the circumstances of the past were different.
“Just because Pushpa Lal founded a party at the age of 24 in 1949 does not mean that a 24-year-old today can simply say they will form a party,” he said.
“CP Mainali became a party chief at 20, and I became one at 19. But that was a time of political movements. It would be ridiculous to say that a 19-year-old should become a party chief today.”
Oli said the country was no longer in a period of political movements and that young people should focus on learning and training.
“Simply creating a buzz about young people is not enough. Society functions through the combined participation of people from all age groups,” he said.
He added that leaders should step aside voluntarily when age or declining physical and mental abilities prevent them from carrying out their responsibilities.
“When people become so old that they cannot move their limbs, see, hear or think clearly, they should relinquish responsibility themselves, without anyone having to tell them. This is not something that needs to become a major dispute,” Oli said.
Stressing the need for unity within the UML, Oli urged party cadres not to become entangled in disputes over generational change. He claimed that the UML was capable of guiding the country in the right direction and said losing a single election did not make the party weak.
He called on party leaders and cadres to participate in the awakening campaign with high morale.
