Leaving education to the Market
One school of thought is claiming that University Education must be left to the market forces. What market does will be the deciding factor. This is true according to the paradigms of liberalised economy. But in Nepal, we are yet to evolve into a responsive academia. Our teachers, faculty members, deans, registrars, controllers and VCs are still filthy humans. They are yet to evolve into responsive citizens. We have teachers who happen to be so as they happened to be sons, daughters and nephews of VCs and registrars. That alone would have been fine if they have clean track record. Their names have consistently appeared in drug abuse, suspected bone-relation cases and so on. Our deans are so cruel that even in 21st century they are sticking to archaic Hindu religious Manuvaad and killing innocent Nepalis merely for being a dalit (an opperessed community in Hindu society.) Our exam controllers have still remained drenched in alcohol while beating their wives blue and pale. Our registrars are so corrupt that the palatial buildings they have constructed with corrupt money is used for filthy relations between the siblings. And what to talk about VCs like Suresh Raj Sharma? He took advantage of his own students, indulged in unhealthy and filthy relations in the name of educating and ultimately married to save his face when the society started to question him. And after a long hiatus, he is penning articles claiming that he is a Sadhu (a saint.)
KU is a typical case of Nepal's academia not being at par with world class institutions and Universities. No doubt, KU students have exhibited very good performance. That is based on their own merit. And, definitely, they were not inspired by Suresh Raj. In that case, instead of charting new paths of success, our students,too, would have been busy practicing nepotism, abusing drugs, indulging in corruption, intoxicating in booze and killing others as a racist. KU students did well inspite of having stayed close to Suresh Raj. And for this credits go to the faculties, teachers, teaching staffs, and administrative staffs who were influential in shaping the mindsets of the students with their exemplary role and impeccable character in KU. So, leaving the students, teachers and staffs aside, we have to compare the performances of our VCs, deans, registrars and all other honchos who are considered powerful only in Nepal, with those of western countries and even India. In no other country, these administrative posts are given importance but in KU and in Nepal only, these posts get so much importance. So, before talking about deregulation and leaving the academia to the private sector, a worldwide phenomenon, we need to evaluate what kind of players are here in Nepal.
Suresh Raj has shown that leaving the education sector to so called private sector is not healthy. Rather it is fraught with grave dangers. He has exemplified that if this is done in Nepal, no market ever evolves because of syndication and cartelism. Friends might have seen how medical professionals behaved recently. The case of Nobel Medical college is a prime example in hand. Board members, whether they are Ph.D.s or Medicos, do not desist from using goons and political connections. This has happened because of the greed for money. Whoever controls the board becomes wealthier in Nepal. Suresh Raj of KU, Umesh Shrestha of PABSON, and all these medical college operators are part and parcel of the education mafia that is ruling the roost in Nepal. Moreover, the incidents in KU since last year, after KUPA movement, has clearly shown that in presence of Mafias faculties and staffs can no longer be safe.
Deregulation of education should be there only after formulation of active social codes. Our society needs to evolve a tenured positions for VCs and registrars so that they would never stay in chair till their deaths. And any element imposing Nepotism must be disqualified automatically. It must be made mandatory to check the social background of any faculty member. Faculties with dubious track records and personal weaknesses should never be allowed to function in any university set up. Only with such provisions, we can think of deregulating the academia, be it higher education or primary education. Otherwise, in the name of deregulation we will be simply breeding monsters. This is the lesson everyone should learn from KU and Suresh Raj.
KU is a typical case of Nepal's academia not being at par with world class institutions and Universities. No doubt, KU students have exhibited very good performance. That is based on their own merit. And, definitely, they were not inspired by Suresh Raj. In that case, instead of charting new paths of success, our students,too, would have been busy practicing nepotism, abusing drugs, indulging in corruption, intoxicating in booze and killing others as a racist. KU students did well inspite of having stayed close to Suresh Raj. And for this credits go to the faculties, teachers, teaching staffs, and administrative staffs who were influential in shaping the mindsets of the students with their exemplary role and impeccable character in KU. So, leaving the students, teachers and staffs aside, we have to compare the performances of our VCs, deans, registrars and all other honchos who are considered powerful only in Nepal, with those of western countries and even India. In no other country, these administrative posts are given importance but in KU and in Nepal only, these posts get so much importance. So, before talking about deregulation and leaving the academia to the private sector, a worldwide phenomenon, we need to evaluate what kind of players are here in Nepal.
Suresh Raj has shown that leaving the education sector to so called private sector is not healthy. Rather it is fraught with grave dangers. He has exemplified that if this is done in Nepal, no market ever evolves because of syndication and cartelism. Friends might have seen how medical professionals behaved recently. The case of Nobel Medical college is a prime example in hand. Board members, whether they are Ph.D.s or Medicos, do not desist from using goons and political connections. This has happened because of the greed for money. Whoever controls the board becomes wealthier in Nepal. Suresh Raj of KU, Umesh Shrestha of PABSON, and all these medical college operators are part and parcel of the education mafia that is ruling the roost in Nepal. Moreover, the incidents in KU since last year, after KUPA movement, has clearly shown that in presence of Mafias faculties and staffs can no longer be safe.
Deregulation of education should be there only after formulation of active social codes. Our society needs to evolve a tenured positions for VCs and registrars so that they would never stay in chair till their deaths. And any element imposing Nepotism must be disqualified automatically. It must be made mandatory to check the social background of any faculty member. Faculties with dubious track records and personal weaknesses should never be allowed to function in any university set up. Only with such provisions, we can think of deregulating the academia, be it higher education or primary education. Otherwise, in the name of deregulation we will be simply breeding monsters. This is the lesson everyone should learn from KU and Suresh Raj.
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